Charles R. Warren

Charles R. Warren of Timonium, MD, passed away at home on January 10, 2025. Born on July 17,1941, in Eureka, Kansas, he was the third son of Lt. Col. Robert C. Warren and Margaret Anne (Rogers) Warren. Charlie, as he preferred to be called, attended elementary and secondary schools in Kansas, Germany Missouri, Indiana, and California as his family moved due to his father’s military assignments. He graduated from Indiana University in 1963 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, and later also at IU, he earned a Masters in Public Administration and a PhD in Political Science and Public Policy.

Charlie served more than four years as an Infantry and Army Intelligence Officer. He attended the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA, to learn German, which he utilized in assignments in Kassel and Frankfurt, Germany. He left the Army with the rank of Captain in 1967.

After earning his masters degree, Charlie became a senior research associate with the National Academy of Public Administration in Washington, DC. He specialized in issues affecting state, regional and urban governments. He directed a five-year demonstration project on metropolitan government which led to the only directly elected regional government in the United States, in Portland, Oregon.

In 1978 and 1979, Charlie served in the administration of President Jimmy Carter to help develop a national urban policy. He continued as a consultant to the Office of Information Systems of the White House to develop a legislative tracking system. In 1980, he returned to the National Academy as a consultant to various research organizations in Washington. After earning his doctorate, Charlie was hired by the State of Kansas to be President of Kansas, Inc., a statewide, bipartisan, public-private partnership for strategic planning and economic development. In this capacity, he reported to the governor and leaders of the legislature and private sector. He remained in this position from 1988-1997.

In 1998, Charlie joined the staff of the Indiana Economic Development Council and worked as a consultant to the Indiana Association of United Ways, dealing primarily with welfare-to-work programs and issues. In 2000, he founded a new organization, the Indiana Institute for Working Families, for which he served as manager and chair of its advisory council. The Institute is a research and advocacy agency that develops policies to enable low-income families to become self-sufficient. It is now known as the Indiana Community Action Poverty Institute.

Charlie retired in 2006. In retirement, he traveled with his first wife Kathleen to visit family, to explore Europe and Latin America, and to take cruises with his brother David and sister-in-law Patricia. In 2017, he moved to Timonium, where he met and married Elaine Tsubota in 2018. They enjoyed an active lifestyle with travels to various New England, Atlantic coast, and southern states. They took courses in art history, visited numerous art museums and galleries, participated in weekly bridge sessions at Bykota Senior Center, and attended classical and chamber music concerts. They also enjoyed all the same TV shows and movies and followed favorite college and professional sports teams.

Charlie was predeceased by his parents; his first wife, Kathleen Plopper Warren, to whom he was married for 53 years; his first son, Gregory Warren, of Riderwood; his brother, David Warren and wife, Patricia Warren of Kansas; and his sister-in-law, Bernadette Warren of Venice, FL. He is survived by his wife, Elaine Tsubota; brother, Robert Warren of Venice, FL; daughter-in-law, Sara Benninghoff Warren of Riderwood; son, Michael Warren (Mariana Campili-Warren) of Atlanta; son, Stephen Warren (Kristy Nabhan-Warren) of Iowa City; and eight grandchildren.

The family will receive friends on Friday, February 21, 2025, from 2-4 PM and 6-8 PM at the Lemmon Funeral Home of Dulaney Valley, Inc., 10 W. Padonia RD (at York RD), Timonium, MD 21093. Funeral services will be on Saturday, February 22, at 3pm at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 1401 Carrollton Ave., Towson, MD 21204.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Charlie’s memory to the Church of the Good Shepherd. His cremated remains will rest at Garrison Forest Veterans Cemetery in Owings Mills, MD.