Posted: Tuesday, September 23, 2008 12:00 am
Longtime Lebanon banker Jack Buchanan died Sept. 13.
From the time Buchanan and his family moved to Lebanon in 1949, he was involved in the civic life of the community.
His contributions were honored in 1966, when he was named Senior First Citizen by the Lebanon Chamber of Commerce.
Buchanan served as a member of the Lebanon Community Hospital Corporation board of directors for 30 years and was its treasurer for many years. He also served on the board's finance and executive committees. He was a member of the Mid-Valley Healthcare Corporation board for 35 years.
In 1992, he chaired a capital campaign that raised $41.3 million for the hospital and he was involved in bringing outpatient services to the hospital in 1993. In 1997, he received the hospital's Conrad Leadership Award.
He was involved in the ambitious six-week fund drive conducted in 1950 to raise money to build Lebanon Community Hospital.
At one time or another he served in every office on the Chamber board, including a term as its president in 1966.
He was treasurer of the Elks Club for many years and also treasurer of the Lebanon Industrial Investment Corporation in the late 1960s.
He was a member of the Strawberry Festival Board and the Lebanon Rotary Club.
"He was a strong influence on many of the activities in the community," said attorney Bill Thomas. "He gave freely of his time and energy for many things."
Buchanan spent all but two years of his working life with the bank that is now Wells Fargo. It was the First National Bank of Portland when he began in 1938 and later the First National Bank of Oregon and First Interstate Bank. He retired in 1980.
In 1965, he became manager of the Lebanon branch.
Thomas said Buchanan also was a pretty good fisherman.
Buchanan was born in Kamiah, Idaho, on June 27, 1916. He and his wife, Irene, celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary this summer. They have two sons.