Charles Irwin Weaver

Charles Weaver, 89, of Houston, Texas, passed quietly in his sleep, June 24, 2014. He was born February 17, 1925, in Greenville, Texas, to Ruby and Eldon Weaver. He graduated from Greenville High School in 1942. After serving as a Mickey navigator during World War II, he attended the University of Texas at Austin, graduating with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering. He met Elaine Meyer Weaver while living in Amarillo. They married and lived a few years in the northeast, but Texas was Charles' home and he was glad to bring his family to Austin in 1970 where he and Elaine lived 37 years and reared their daughters. In 2008, they moved to Houston to be near their daughter, Charlotte and her family.

Charles considered himself fortunate to come of age during a time when his country needed him. He answered that call by enlisting in the Air Force at 17 where he trained as a Mickey Navigator, a new, experimental navigational process. As such, he directed the pilot on headings to be taken, and on the bomb run, directed the airplane in coordination with the bombardier. He was also responsible for keeping its existence secret and ensuring the the enemy didn't acquire the technology. He and his crew completed 23 missions out of Halesworth, England, including providing air support for the Normandy invasion. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions above and beyond the call of duty. A plaque will be dedicated in his honor at the DFC Memorial at March Airfield in Riverside, California.

Charles loved music. He learned to play the trumpet in Greenville High School. As a student at the University of Texas he continued to share his love of music by playing for dance bands in Austin during the swing era and with the U.T. Longhorn Marching Band. Later in life, Charles was known for celebrating first downs and touchdowns made by his beloved Longhorn football team by treating the University Hills neighbors to snippets of "The Eyes of Texas" out the back door of his home.

The stars and celestial movement always fascinated Charles. As a young boy, he wanted to study the sky more closely so he built a telescope by grinding the six-inch lens himself. Charles shared his love for the stars with many people throughout his life, inviting his daughters’ classes for star-gazing parties using the same telescope he built as a boy. Building his telescope began a lifelong love of parabolas. Numbers were his friends and he found beauty in calculating a perfect curve. On the ceiling of his bedroom he charted the path of the sun for an entire year, creating a solar clock/calendar that is still in use by the home's current owners.

Charles possessed a gentle soul. As an animal lover, he perpetually had a small dog in his lap. To his daughters' horror, he practiced capture and release with cockroaches. Pruning trees was painful. Even cutting the grass contained an element of violence with which he wasn't entirely comfortable.

Charles was a wonderful, gentle, loving and hands-on father during an age when few men were. He is survived by his daughter Elizabeth Moore and her husband, David Moore of Montana, grandsons, Daniel and Jason, and three great-grandchildren, and by his daughter Charlotte and her husband Jeff Gifford-Weaver, grandson Malcolm Charles and granddaughter Elise, all of Houston.

Memorial Service will be held at The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany, 9600 S. Gessner, Houston at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 5. A small reception will follow in the parish hall. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to your local humane society, or to the charity of your choice.