BATH — Everett Parker Pope, 90, died July 16, 2009 at Hill House.

Born in Milton, Mass., on July 16, 1919, he was the son of Laurence E. Pope and Ruth (Parker) Pope.

He attended local schools and graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Bowdoin College.

After graduation, he joined the Marine Corps and married his high school sweetheart, Eleanor Hawkins. In June, 1942, he was deployed to the Pacific, and received the Bronze Star Medal for valor and the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service.

After the war, he returned to Boston and joined Workingmens Cooperative Bank. In 1953, he was named president, making him the youngest bank president in New England. For many years, he was a leader in the savings and loan industry, pioneering the use of interest-bearing checking accounts. He was a long-standing supporter of the federal student loan program and served as the first chairman of the board of Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation in 1982.

In 1983, he retired to Brunswick with his wife Eleanor. From 1961 to 1988, he served on the governing boards of Bowdoin before being elected Trustee Emeritus. He remained steadily involved in the college, serving as president of the overseers and chairman of the board of trustees. After he stepped down as chairman, he helped establish a memorial on Bowdoin campus to graduates who died in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. He received two honorary degrees from Bowdoin, in 1946 and 1987.

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He was predeceased by his beloved wife of 66 years, Eleanor, who died at Hill House on Jan. 22, 2009.

Surviving are two sons, Laurence and Ralph and their wives, Elizabeth and Jean; and two granddaughters, Eleanor and Elizabeth.

There will be a service celebrating the lives of Everett and Eleanor in the Bowdoin College chapel at 4 p.m., Friday, July 31, followed by a reception.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Pope Scholarship Fund at Bowdoin College.

Arrangements are by Desmond and Sons Funeral Home, Bath.

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