Charles Wesley Kleven

Charles Wesley Kleven was born in Omaha, Nebraska, June 20, 1935. His maternal grandparents lived there and his dad was a minister in Culbertson, Nebraska. When Wes was 17 months old, his father received a call to begin a new ministry. They became traveling evangelists spending two weeks at a time in each town taking the first Monday at the end of the engagement to travel to the next town. When he was a school age boy, he began a new school every other Tuesday and received a report card 9 days later, on his last Friday. He attended 187 schools before he graduated from high school in Truo, Iowa. He was once recognized in “Ripley‘s Believe It or Not” for having attended so many schools.

Summers in his youth were spent at family bible camps in Washington state. One of his fond memories was taking food to a soldier whose duty was to be “on watch” for the enemy vessels in the ocean from a point high on a hill.

He attended the University of Oregon and for the first time, was anchored in one place for schooling. He enjoyed his freedom and graduated with a degree in psychology in 1958. He moved to Pasadena, California and lived with his grandmother Ane Rasmussen. He found employment at Los Encinas, a psychiatric facility in Pasadena and took classes at Cal State Los Angeles to earn his teaching credential. He taught social studies at Franklin high school and eventually became a department head. He enjoyed teaching and had a group of fellow teachers who launched together Daily in the print shop lab.

Wes met his wife, Sharon, through Sharon’s sister, Suzanne, and her future husband, Duane Ellison. Duane‘s parents and family had moved from Nebraska to Pasadena and Wes and Duane become friends. One Christmas, Duane invited Suzanne and Sharon to spend the Christmas break in California. That was when Sharon met Wes.

When Sharon graduated from the University of Nebraska, she found a job in Alhambra, California and she found Wes too! They were married on March 25, 1961.

Wes became a father in 1964, which necessitated a move to a larger home. Their daughter Ingrid was born in 1964. He thoroughly enjoyed raising a responsible daughter and is proud of her achievements. Wes loved cars! He would have traded cars every year if he could have. One of his hobbies was to build model cars. Wes‘s hobbies were cars, real estate, going to Broadway musicals and keeping his home and yard pristine.

Wes and Sharon both retired in 1997 and moved to Oceanside, California where they have resided ever since. In 2019, he began having health problems and his determined nature helped him survive until March 22, 2025.

Family and friends are invited to attend his Celebration of Life Service on Saturday, April 5, 2025 at Eternal Hills Memorial Park at 9:30 a.m. After the ceremony, the family has invited everyone to join them for a luncheon at the Green Dragon Restaurant and Museum.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in his honor to Moonlight Amphitheater, 1200 Vale Terrace Drive, Vista, CA 92084.

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