Charles C. Campbell

The amazing life journey of Charles Chesterfield Campbell, 92, of Jacksonville, FL, devoted father, loving husband, patriot and humanitarian, came to a peaceful end on April, 15, 2013. Charles was born on February 26, 1921, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, of American parents, Frederick George Campbell and Katarina Dirks. Charles’ father, Fred Campbell, worked for the Canadian Pacific Railroad and later for the Northern Pacific Railroad, out of Whitefish, Montana, which is where Charles grew up. Charles had a tough, abusive childhood, his parents divorced and his mother remarried. His stepfather Richard Martin “Buck” Rice rejected Charles, while he accepted and took care of Charles’ brother William “Teddy”. No longer able to live in his home, Charles found himself homeless in rural Montana, at age 11. He worked odd jobs for room and board, and occasionally stayed with relatives. Charles also frequently ran moonshine to make extra money. Despite tremendous adversity, Charles completed high school. Upon graduation, he falsified his age on his military application in order to enlist in the United States Navy, and proudly served his country for 25 years. During his time in the service Charles served on nine different aircraft carriers and saw action in the South Pacific, including Pearl Harbor. He was a flight mechanic and earned the rank of Chief Petty Officer, flew search and recovery missions, and ushered in the era of the jet aircraft, being one of the first to be certified as a jet engine mechanic. In addition, Charles also earned several service medals and commendations. Charles’ duty stations in the Navy included Navy Pier, IL; Barber’s Point, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Meridian, MS; Kingsville, TX; NAS Jax, Cecil Field & Mayport, FL. While stationed in Chicago, he met Splendora Marguerite DeMichelis. They were married on November 25, 1944 and spent 69 wonderful years together. Upon leaving the military, Charles relocated the family, which now included five children, to Billings, Montana, where he spent several years working as an aviation mechanic and furthered his love of the outdoors. He relocated the family to Jacksonville, FL in 1966 and went to work for an aviation contractor at NAS, Jax. Charles and Splendora added two more children to “the tribe”, as he affectionately referred to his children, bringing the total to seven. With a reduction in force at NAS, Jax, Charles went to work for Kaiser Chemical and Aluminum Company as a machinist, where he retired at age 65. Charles enjoyed spending time with his family and friends, snow skiing, camping, hiking, hunting and fishing…especially fishing, which was his passion. He passed on his love of the outdoors and fishing to his family and was a patient mentor, who was always looking for an opportunity to “wet a line”. He was the ultimate handyman and able to fix just about anything, having accumulated quite a collection of tools over the years. Charles could always be seen and heard, loudly and proudly ringing his cowbell in support of his children during their sporting events. He was known to be happy and positive and knew no strangers, a genuine people person. Charles had a wide, bright, infectious smile and great sense of humor. He enjoyed talking with people and making them laugh, delighting children with his Donald Duck impersonation. Charles was quick to offer assistance to family, friends, neighbors and strangers alike; a true Good Samaritan and humanitarian. Charles was a self-made, hardworking, family man, who was driven by the values of duty, honor, commitment and personal responsibility. Charles built a wonderful family, who are instilled with the core values he lived by. He is survived by his beloved wife of 69 years, Splendora; his brother, William “Teddy”; seven children (Charlene, Jaculin, Scott, James, Chris, Dawn and Denise); eleven grandchildren (Chase, Kara, Sean, Michella, Paul, David, Meaghan, Katie, Philip, Ian and Sophie) and four great-grandchildren (Miles, Jaden, Kira and Colton). Charles was a genuine, one-of-a-kind, wonderful human being. While we will deeply miss his physical presence, his spirit and legacy will live on in all of the lives he touched. In lieu of flowers, it is the family's request that donations be made to Northeast Florida Community Hospice at www.communityhospice.com