Charles Decatur Cunningham Jr

Charles Decatur Cunningham Jr. died peacefully January 12, after a brief illness. He was 88. A Greensboro native with deep roots in the area, Decatur grew up next door to The Keeley Institute, which was owned and managed by his family. It was housed in Blandwood Mansion, originally the home of Governor Morehead.

A celebration of Decatur’s life will be at 11:00 am, Friday, January 16, 2015 in the sanctuary of First Presbyterian church. The family will visit with friends following the service in the Virginia Gilmer Room at the church.

Decatur graduated from Greensboro High School and after a year at the Citadel served as a radar operator in the Navy from 1945-46. After his Navy service he attended UNC-Chapel Hill, graduating in 1949.

He then served as Secretary-Treasurer of the Keeley Institute before pursuing his permanent career in the textile business. In the 1950s, he worked in Joe Foil's sales agency and then became sales manager for the Hemphill Machinery Company. In the early 1960s he founded his own agency, Cunningham Yarn Company, which specialized in hosiery yarns. He had long and successful affiliations for many years with Pharr Yarns, Pisgah Yarn and Dyeing, Leon-Ferenbach, National Spinning Company, and others in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Decatur loved the business of selling and loved the game of golf. He was a member of the Carolina golf team, was the Greensboro Country Club champion in 1948, and twice won the Carolina Yarn Association Tournament, among other tournaments. He was famous for playing in all weathers and golfed just weeks before he died. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Greensboro Country Club, serving on various committees throughout the years, and was a member of the Carolina Yarn Association and the Greensboro Investment Club.

His Scots-Irish ancestors were early settlers of Guilford County and of historic Buffalo Presbyterian Church. Like his father, Decatur was a lifetime member of the First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro. He served as both a deacon and an elder for many years.

Decatur was well known for his gentlemanly southern manners. Yet, he had a keen sense of humor and never met a stranger. He will be missed by all his friends and family.

In addition to his wife of 55 years, Margot Hammond Cunningham, he is survived by four children: Charles Decatur Cunningham, III (Janie Weaver) of Ypsilanti, MI; Margaret Carrington Tarr (Jake) of Washington, DC; Louise Edmunds Cunningham of Washington, DC; and John Somerville Cunningham (Jennifer) of Greensboro. He is also survived by his niece Margaret Boothe Baddour (Phil) of Goldsboro, great-niece Helen Somerville Baddour of Raleigh, and five grandchildren: Margot and Ashley Cunningham of Greensboro, and Evan, Cate and Laney Tarr of Washington, DC.

Memorial may be made to First Presbyterian Church of Greensboro, 617 N Elm St., Greensboro, NC 27401; Hospice an Palliative Care of Greensboro, 2500 Summit Ave, Greensboro, NC 27405; or to the charity of ones’ choosing.

On line condolences may be made through www.haneslineberryfuneralhomes.com.