Kenneth Walker, the third CEO of the 118-year-old Farmers & Merchants Bank, died Jan. 19 at his home in Buena Park at the age of 97, according to an announcement from the bank.
Farmers & Merchants was founded in Long Beach by Walker’s great-grandfather. It still maintains its headquarters Downtown. During Walker’s 29-year tenure at the bank, it also opened offices in Rossmoor, Orange, Lake Forest, Fullerton, San Juan Capistrano and Santa Ana.
Walker was born in Long Beach at Seaside Hospital on April 17, 1927.
Under his direction, he helped facilitate the expansion of the hospital — now known as MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center. A $4 million loan from F&M Bank allowed the hospital to buy the land on Atlantic Boulevard where the current medical campus resides.
In 1980, the bank opened a branch on the hospital’s campus.
His son succeeded him as CEO in 2008, but Walker remained involved in oversight, investments, loans and personnel matters until recent years, according to the bank.
Walker’s career at F&M unofficially started in 1938. An 11-year-old Walker worked as an elevator operator and groundskeeper of the Long Beach headquarters on Third Street and Pine Avenue.
After he graduated from Long Beach Poly High School in 1944, he joined the U.S. Navy.

Walker returned to F&M as a teller in 1948, but also worked as a machine shop operator after hours and as a farmer in Arizona on the weekends.
Over the next 17 years, he worked “in almost every conceivable banking capacity” at F&M before becoming executive vice president in 1965, according to the bank.
Fourteen years later, he succeeded his father, Gus Walker, as president.
Ken Walker met his wife Nancy MacMillan while studying economics and finance at the University of Southern California.
The pair wed in 1948 and remained married for 60 years until her death in October 2008.
Ken Walker and his wife played a key role in preserving the Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, one of the largest and most distinctive churches in the United States.
Following the death of their son Howard in 1973, they also established the C.J., Carrie D. & R. Howard Walker Foundation to support the YMCA of Long Beach.
Ken Walker is survived by his sons, John, Daniel and Henry and his daughter Anne Nicholson, along with 11 grandchildren and many great-grandchildren.
Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce CEO Jeremy Harris extended his “deepest condolences to the Walker family and the Farmers & Merchants Bank team during this difficult time.”
“[Ken Walker’s] leadership and commitment to integrity left a profound impact on the Long Beach business community, helping to shape its growth and success for decades,” Harris said.