Charles Joseph Kruger

On January 17, 2016, Charles Joseph Kruger passed away peacefully in his sleep. Charles was born on October 13, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan. His grandmother gave him the nickname, Chip, when he was a young boy and he has gone by that name ever since.

Chip grew up in Michigan where he attended the University of Detroit. In 1966, he received a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering. Shortly after graduation, he moved to Dallas, Texas and began his professional career with Texas Instruments. This was a long, successful career that would span 39 years in the defense industry.

In 1969, Chip married Sandra Oakley. Chip and Sandy decided to locate to Plano, where they built their home and began their family. Jeffery Joseph was born on June 28, 1973 and Matthew Robert was born on October 15, 1978. Chip was an involved father, even when working full-time and earning a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Dallas. After a long battle with cancer, Sandy passed away in 1992. Chip and the boys came together as a family to persevere after the hard loss.

Chip continued his distinguished career with Raytheon after his group was acquired from Texas Instruments. In addition, Chip remained active with the boys, especially coaching soccer. Chip retired from Raytheon in 2006 and began to volunteer for the Plano Youth Soccer Association. He performed various activities for the organization for the next 9 years, but his most vital contribution was organizing the Plano Labor Day Invitational where he acted as the tournament director for several years.

Chip lived an honest and simple life, where he enjoyed genealogy, cheered for the Dallas Sidekicks, and he remained a committed fan of the Dallas Cowboys, though he expressed frustration with them over the last decade.

Chip is preceded in death by his parents, Emma Grace Stein and Joseph Charles Kruger as well as his wife, Sandy. He is survived by his sons, Jeff and his wife, Misty, of Irving, Texas and Matt and his wife, Sarah, of Plano, Texas. He has three grandchildren, Bryan Golightley of Irving, Caitlin Kruger and Samuel Kruger of Plano, Texas. He also leaves behind a brother, Kenneth Kruger and wife, Judy of Saline, Michigan as well as several nieces and nephews.