Charles Calvin Mills

Chuck Mills of Los Osos, California passed away on November 5th in San Luis Obispo. He was eighty-nine years old.

Chuck, a lover of music, people, and nature, was best known on the central coast for leading a weekly senior hiking group for more than ten years and being an active member of Singing for Hope Choir and The Morro Bay Shanty Project. He volunteered at Hearst Castle’s “Living History” program in period costume. Chuck designed “Grandpa’s Farm” activities for kids and the Sea Otter Education Trailer at Morro Rock along with other activities and campfire programs associated with various parks.

Mills was raised on a ranch in Walker’s Basin and moved into the city of Bakersfield for High School. He served in the Naval Air Reserves and graduated from Mount Sac. Jr College before going to work for Pepsi and then, Safeway, where he participated in local Union Leadership in the 80s. He met and married his wife Vicki Tormey Mills in the bay area and moved with their children to Eureka, California where he lived for twenty years.

He served as an assistant Scoutmaster in Boy Scouts of America and enjoyed hiking, camping, and fishing with his children. He took up running mid-life and completed various half and full marathons.

Chuck and Vicki went back to college in the 1990s and earned degrees. They traveled extensively after retirement and visited more than 200 state and national parks, lived seasonally at several, and worked often as park volunteers.

In Los Osos he was a longtime resident of Sea Oaks Mobile home park where he and Vicki settled down just prior to her passing in 2007.

Before Chuck passed, he shared these words, “I consider this the biggest celebration of my life—a long life well-spent, in which I have done everything I really wanted to do and have had so many friends! No one could have asked for more.”

He is survived by his sister Judith Shepard and her husband George Shepard of Los Osos; sons David Leffler of Littlefield Iowa, Michael Mills of Port Angeles, Washington, grandchildren Cypress Bawden-Mills, Uintah Bawden, Crystal Leffler, Steven and Becca Gladding, Jeff and Steph Gladding, Molly Gladding, Sara and Shuzo Yoshihara; and great Grandchildren: Emmalyn Lee, Haleigh, Charli, Calvin, Colsyn, and Nathaniel Smith; Jillian and Paige Gladding; Addie and Izzy Gladding; Ai Osaka, Rinka Nagase; and Peter and Alice Brown.

Chuck Mills is preceded in death by his parents Nancy and David Mills, his wife Vicki Tormey Mills, son Jim Leffler, daughters Lori Gladding, Laura Belt, and Grandson Jed Smith.

Memorial details will be announced in late winter. Contact his son, Michael Mills for details. In Lieu of flowers, consider making a donation in his name to SaveTheRedwoods.org