The Savings Bank Elects Karen Sawyer Trustee

Karen A. Sawyer, Director of Community Development and Planning for the City of Peabody, has been elected to the Board of Trustees of The Savings Bank. Sawyer was formerly a Corporator of the Bank and will remain as a Director of the TSB Charitable Foundation.

Sawyer will fill the vacancy created by the sudden passing of Thomas P. Butler earlier this month.

“Although we continue to mourn our colleague and friend, the Board of Trustees and I are pleased to announce Karen Sawyer’s election to the Board,” President and Chief Executive Officer Brian D. McCoubrey said. “She has extensive experience in both the public and private sectors and will be a welcome addition to the Board as we move forward.”

Sawyer has more than 20 years of experience in the public and private sectors and has served in both the Executive and Legislative branches of state government. Prior to being named Peabody’s Director of Community Development and Planning in 2009 she served as Community Development Director for the City of Methuen and has worked Chief Operating Officer, Director of Corporate Development for MassInnovation, LLC,  a private sector real estate development firm .

Prior to her tenure in municipal government, Sawyer served in various capacities at the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, the Massachusetts Office of Business Development, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, the Office of Governor Bill Weld and the Massachusetts State Senate. 

She is a graduate from Duke University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and French.

Sawyer was first elected as a Corporator of The Savings Bank in 2007. In addition to her affiliation with The Savings Bank, she is a member of Board of Directors of the Mill Cities Community Investments Board of Directors. She has also served as a Director of the Merrimack Valley Economic Development Council, and previously served as Vice Chair of the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority Advisory.

Sawyer has received several awards and honors, including the Manuel Carballo Governor’s Award for Excellence in Public Service in 1996 for outstanding accomplishments as Director of Economic Assistance Coordinating Council; MassDevelopment’s Manager of the Year in 2002; and was honored by the YWCA of Greater Lawrence in 2004 at the 21st Annual Tribute to Women in recognition of exemplary professional accomplishments and compassionate service.

She resides in Andover with her three children.