Spiess new Eastern board member

BOSTON – Eastern Bank has added Paul D. Spiess to its board of directors.Spiess, former Chairman of Centrix Bank & Trust’s board, was elected to Eastern’s board shortly after Centrix merged into Eastern in late October.”Eastern Bank is very pleased to add Paul to our board,” said Eastern Bank Chairman and CEO Richard E. Holbrook.”Paul’s extensive business and philanthropic efforts throughout New England will serve us, and our newly expanded customer base, very well.”Spiess, of Amherst, N.H., spent 25 years working in the banking and financial services industry, most recently as executive vice president and chief operating officer of CFX Bank in Keene, N.H.He also founded and served as president of Colonial Mortgage, Inc., of Amherst, N.H., from 1983 to 1993.During the early 2000s, Spiess served as a state legislator in Concord and as co-chair of the Citizens Health Initiative.He currently serves on a variety of boards, including: president of the Souhegan Valley Interfaith Housing Corporation, board member of the New Hampshire Healthcare Cost and Utilization Review Board, and as a director and vice-chair of SHARE Outreach, Inc. of Milford, NH.Spiess graduated from Marblehead High School (1967), earned his undergraduate degree from Colby College (1971) and an MBA in Finance from Boston University (1977).Eastern, founded in 1818 and based in Boston, is the largest and oldest mutual bank in the country, with $9.5 billion in assets and more than 100 branches serving communities in eastern Massachusetts and southern and coastal New Hampshire.It offers banking, investments and insurance all under one roof.Eastern Bank, which includes Eastern Bank Wealth Management and Eastern Insurance, is a recognized leader in corporate social responsibility and for its advocacy on behalf of a number of social justice causes.