OAKDALE − Oak Valley Bancorp, the bank holding company for Oak Valley Community Bank and Eastern Sierra Community Bank, is announcing that Ronald C. Martin has communicated to the Boards of Directors of Oak Valley Bancorp and Oak Valley Community Bank his decision to retire as Chief Executive Officer of each entity on June 18.

Martin began his banking career in 1977 and joined Oak Valley Community Bank as President and Chief Executive Officer in March 1992, shortly after its formation.

While at the helm, Martin has seen the Bank grow from a single-location de novo bank, to a full-service, 14 branch community bank serving a five-county footprint with over $650 million in assets. He played an instrumental role throughout that time in building the Bank and shareholder confidence, particularly during some of the early, formative years.

In his retirement, Martin plans to remain a member of the Board of Directors and continue to provide strategic guidance to the Company’s and the Bank’s Boards.

Christopher M. Courtney, the current President of the Company and of the Bank, and also a veteran of the local banking industry, is ready to take the helm as Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank following Martin’s retirement.

Established in 1991, the bank has branches in Oakdale, Sonora, Turlock, Stockton, Patterson, Ripon, Escalon, Manteca, three branches in Modesto, and three branches in their Eastern Sierra Division, which includes Bridgeport, Mammoth Lakes and Bishop.