Charles Eugene Doster, Charlie to most, Gene to his childhood friends, passed away June 28th, 2016, at home.

Charlie was born in the small town of Rebecca, Georgia, October 30th,1928, the middle child of Charles Doster and Mary Elizabeth Gibbs Doster. His father died when he was 9, and the family struggled financially, although they always had books. During World War II, he ran away to join the navy at 14. He had to run away twice, since his mother tracked him down the first time. The recruiter initially assigned him to the army, until he noticed the boy tearing up, and Charlie confessed he really wanted to be in the navy, so the recruiter changed his papers. He served as a bosun's mate on an aircraft carrier in the South Pacific, and watched the atomic explosions at Bikini Atoll.

He always recalled his service in the navy very fondly, particularly the food (which may tell you how poor he was growing up). He would have made a career of it, but he came down with tuberculosis and spent over a year in a VA hospital, where he also loved the food. He was a chaplain's assistant at the VA, and wheeled carts of books around the hospital for the other patients. He spent most of his time there reading, which was one of his greatest loves.

After he was discharged, he went to college on the GI Bill, getting a degree in Business Administration from the University of Georgia in 1953. He lived in a fraternity, "because they had better food." He joined the FDIC as a bank examiner, and began a lifetime of traveling around to banks. He said the dirtiest things he ever encountered were hotel carpets and money, since counting cash in bank vaults left his fingers black at the end of the day. During those early days of his career, he met and married the love of his life, a school teacher named Sarah Hartley, who was a far better cook than the navy. They had two girls and one boy, and he read to them from their time in the cradle, passing on his passion for books and learning.

As Charlie rose through the ranks of the FDIC, they moved from Statesboro to Albany, Georgia, then Mobile, Tampa, Richmond and Philadelphia, where he was an FDIC Regional Director. Marty Tunnell, a bank examiner and lifelong friend, recalls he was one of the first to send women and African American bank examiners into the field. His next tour was as Regional Director in San Francisco, where Sarah planted olive trees and fruit trees, and they finally sent all the kids off to college. He oversaw banking throughout the West and in Hawaii. Mary Bitterman, who was director of the Hawaii State Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, credits him with "saving the banking industry in Hawaii."

After 8 years in San Francisco, the FDIC's limit on one posting, he was transferred to Columbus, Ohio. He and Sarah looked at the fruit trees and olive trees in the California garden, and at the snow in Columbus, and he decided to retire from the FDIC to stay in California. He created a consulting firm for financial institutions, F.I.A.C., which entailed yet more time traveling around to banks. He brought in Dennis Parker, his "best friend ever" from the FDIC, and several other former bank examiners. The Savings and Loan crisis was just beginning, so they were very busy. After 20 years, he tried to retire, but there was always another crisis where someone wanted his advice. When Slovenia become independent from Yugoslavia and needed to privatize their banks, he spent over a year living in Ljubljana helping create a new banking system. He liked Ljubljana, where he said the food was a lot like the navy's.

He finally did retire, although he still had files from one last open case stacked around his arm chair, and spent his time at home with his beloved wife and his books. He was very active in his church, the Trinity Baptist Church in Concord, California. He died peacefully at home, the way he wanted. He was predeceased by his brother, Cecil Doster, and his sister, Marilu Doster Goolsby. He is survived by Sarah, his wife of 63 years, three children, Sara Kathleen Doster (Kathi) MD PhD, April Suzanne Doster (Sue) LCSW, and Charles Eugene Doster, Jr JD, and one grandchild, Rachel Spain Fagundes. He will be remembered for his high ethical standards and great generosity.

There will be a memorial service at Ouimet Brothers Concord Funeral Chapel, 4125 Clayton Road in Concord, California, at 1pm on August 28th, 2016.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by San Francisco Chronicle from Aug. 8 to Aug. 14, 2016.

Memories and Condolences
for Charles Doster

Sponsored by Ouimet Bros. Concord Funeral Chapel.

5 Entries

sharoane allen

October 30, 2019

Happy Birthday Charlie

Walter H. Thompson

August 30, 2016

Sarah and family,

I first met Charlie along with W. D. Mitchell when the Tupelo, Miss field office joined the Mobile field office examining a complex bank in southern Mississipi.
Then when I was in Miami/Hollywood and Charlie was in Tampa, we worked together several times each year.
The most memorable job was the Bank of Miami Beach, one of the toughest problem banks when senior examiner Doster spent about two months in Miami Beach. Charlie wanted to transfer me to Tampa. I had handled oversight of Bank of Miami operations.
Our paths crossed several times in ensuing 20 years including a week in New York City when he and I went to the restaurant on top of the World Trade Center.
Some of his favorite FDIC staff were also my associates, including Paul Tennison, John Stone, Nick Gordon.
He was a very smart man and a good leader for the FDIC.
You have my and my wife, Marjorie's sympathy, Walter Thompson

Howard Murray

August 19, 2016

In memory of Mr. Doster

I first worked under his leadership in the Philadelphia Region of the FDIC back in the early seventies as a student bank examiner. I was a young cooperative education student from Northeastern University (Boston, MA.) working as an intern. I only met him once during an initial student introduction session and remember his inspirational talk about the need for integrity in banking and the role we should play in it.

Although I only met him once, a few years later he was instrumental in the FDIC hiring me full-time upon graduation from college. At that time, living in Boston I was offered an opportunity of employment in the Philadelphia Region although I wanted to begin my career on the West Coast. Somehow I found out that Mr. Doster was now Regional Director of the FDIC in San Francisco and contacted him with my desire to work for the company but on the west coast instead of the east coast.

To my surprise he remembered me and arranged for the relocation to take place. Although I was only with the FDIC in that region for a short period of time, I'll never forget his generosity and the springboard for success he initiated for a young African American just starting out my career.

Howard Murray
August 19, 2016

Mary Bitterman

August 12, 2016

In Memory of Charles Doster

I first met Charles Doster, Regional Director of the FDIC in San Francisco, when I became Director of the Hawaii State Department of Regulatory Agencies in February 1981. Within the portfolio of the department, soon renamed the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, was the Division of Financial Institutions which cooperated with FDIC personnel in regulatory examinations of Hawaii banks.

Charles Doster was an experienced executive widely respected for his integrity and intelligence. His staff colleagues admired him and people from the FDIC-regulated banks found him well informed and always fair. He holds a special place in my heart for taking bold steps in addressing a potentially large and harmful problem for the people of Hawaii.

We had nearly two dozen financial institutions known as industrial loan companies. Those entities provided higher returns to depositors than banks did but had no federal insurance. When the economy weakened in the early 1980s, with the savings and loan crisis, several of the industrial loan companies in Hawaii experienced severe problems, were strained to cover customer withdrawals, and had to be closed.

A provision within the Garn-St. Germain Act of 1982 permitted institutions like Hawaii's industrial loan companies to stand eligible for FDIC insurance if they met certain additional requirements. It was clear that to protect Hawaii depositors we needed to have our local companies meet the higher standard, and, with Governor George Ariyoshi's approval, we approached the State Legislature and were able to secure legislation requiring Hawaii's industrial loan companies to be FDIC-insured.

I discussed our situation in detail with Director Doster who understood immediately its gravity. He soon sent a significant FDIC contingent to Hawaii to examine the remaining industrial loan companies. Fortunately, each of the companies addressed any shortcomings that were noted and was able to meet FDIC requirements for safety and soundness within the following year.

He could have ignored Hawaii's situation and put us on a back burner given everything else on his to do list, but he clearly recognized the State's fragility and vulnerability. The fact that remote Hawaii was able to weather the financial storm of the early 1980s as well as it did was due, in large part, to the resolve and action of Charles Doster. The world would be a better place if we had more persons in high positions following his example of conscientious stewardship. In my view, Charles Doster was a hero and an individual of singular quality.

Mary Bitterman
July 29, 2016