Charles Russell Lane

Charles Lane, the gentle soul and quiet man, passed away suddenly and quietly on February 5th, 2022 at the age of 95 of cancer. Family was everything to him and he is survived by six children: Alan (Lorrie) Lane, Carol Lena Lane, Bruce Lane, David (Pat) Lane, Patty (George) Beaujon, and John (Rebecca) Lane; eight grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his wife of 46 years, Janott Meyers Lane.

Charles was born on January 27, 1927 in Three Forks, Montana to Mary Adeline and John William Lane and had three siblings, Burt (Vivian) Lane, Ruth (Spike) Typolt, and Lila (Boyd) Rafferty; all of whom preceded him in death. He graduated high school early so that he could join the Navy to serve in World War II in the South Pacific. After the war, he moved to Portland, Oregon to be with the rest of his siblings and graduated from the University of Portland with a BS in Chemistry in 1950. There, he met his one love in life and his future wife, Janott Meyers.

His career in geotechnical engineering spanned over 70 years. He began working for Northwest Testing Laboratories right out of College and although the company changed hands several times, he worked there for over 60 years. When they finally asked him to retire, he merely went to the competition and worked for Earth Engineers until he stopped working at 93 because of the Covid-19 pandemic. As a professional engineer, he designed the foundations for many of the major buildings in downtown Portland, and thousands of geotechnical projects throughout the Pacific Northwest. He has been active over his 70-year career with the Oregon Chapters of the American Civil Engineering Association, American Chemical Society, and the American Concrete Institute.

Charles always enjoyed the great outdoors and continued to terrorize the fish of the world until the very end. For many years, he camped and backpacked with the Boy Scouts, and hunted deer and elk with friends in the Pacific Northwest. Charles and Janott traveled extensively in earlier years to China, Europe and on various cruises. Charles loved to spend time with family and friends with annual trips to Orcas Island and visits to family. He was an average pool player until you laid a dollar on the table. He couldn't shuffle the cards, but if you ever played cards with him, you soon found yourself buying another stack of chips. He was always working on a project and loved helping his children with theirs. In his later years, he loved just being around his children, grand-children and great-grand-children, living vicariously through their lives.

His generation is often referred to as the “Greatest Generation”. Charles was a prime example of what this means in his dedication to his family, his country, his church and his profession.

Due to Covid-19, a family graveside service will be held on Friday, February 11th at Mount Calvary Cemetery. A Celebration of Life (i.e. wake) is being planned for summer with details to be announced in the near future. Family, friends, and colleagues will be welcome to share stories and celebrate the life of a beloved father, friend and colleague.

In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to the University of Portland or the American Diabetes Association.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.finleysunsethills.com for the Lane family.