Charles E. Cheever Jr. is among four who will be honored on April 21 for his impact on the banking industry, his community and the state as an inductee in to the Texas Bankers Hall of Fame. He will be recognized during a ceremony in Sam Houston State University's Lowman Student Center Ballroom. The Texas Bankers Hall of Fame was established by SHSU's Smith-Hutson Endowed Chair of Banking to recognize outstanding bankers for their contributions to the field, as well as to those around them.
Cheever has been a family businessman almost his entire career, whose career in banking has been devoted to Broadway Bank. Currently chairman emeritus of Broadway Bank, he joined the bank in 1957 and assumed the position of president in 1961, at the age of 32. During his time as president, Cheever was the driving force behind much of the growth and expansion of the bank and worked alongside his father, Col. Charles E. Cheever Sr., to create an environment of innovation by working to extend the bank’s drive-thru hours and guiding the bank through the hard-hitting recession of the late 1980s, when many banks and financial institutions closed.
Before joining Broadway Bank, Cheever served as an Air Force pilot instructor and then as lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force Reserves. He also earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas School of Law in 1957. Throughout his life, Cheever has embraced the spirit of giving back to the community, which his parents also instilled into the culture of Broadway Bank, by serving as co-chairman of the San Fernando Cathedral Restoration Project and the Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas Capital Campaign; as a trustee of the United Way, University of the Incarnate Word, and Southwest Research Institute; and on the University of Texas Health Science Center’s advisory board for the Center for Medical Ethics and Humanities.
Honoring a family legacy of supporting the space program, he spearheaded the capital campaign for the Challenger Learning Center on the San Antonio College campus. The Star Tower, the most visible feature at the Challenger’s Scobee Education Center, bears his name. In addition, Cheever served as the chairman, contact banker and regional director of the Texas Bankers Association, as well as as a director of San Antonio Branch of the Federal Reserve. He was the founding co-chairman of San Antonio Education Partnership and chaired many projects and organizations, such as the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, the Leadership Division of Forward San Antonio and others—giving his time and expertise to many community organizations.