Charles Ray Barnard

Charles Barnard, age 73, of the Woodlands, Texas, passed away peacefully on June 7th, 2026, at home surrounded by family. Born on February 4th, 1953, in Kingsville, Texas, Charles was the youngest child of Luther and Bobbie Barnard. Charles was a very gifted student and athlete alike, but his heart yearned for freedom for the open road and everything this beautiful country had to offer him. From hitchhiking to California to acquiring his beloved little green Triumph Spitfire convertible, he found all the freedom that he was looking for. Though his passion was traveling, he often stopped back home to check in on his family and friends, and to help with anything that they may need before going on to his next excursion. Charles was always extremely mechanically inclined and handy but also loved helping people out. This never stopped, even when his illness was at its worst, he would often try to spring up and out of his bed, no balance, with a bad hip and all, and help with any project or chore that was going on at the time. Charles had a very big sense of adventure, and while on these adventures, he met his former wife, Christa, and though their paths later diverged, they brought a wonderful son, Charlie Barnard II, into this world. Then in his own words "his life changed dramatically and forever BUT for the better". Once becoming a father, his new life was very different. Charles spoke highly of this point in his life, from becoming a new father and from going from small jobs to finally achieving a real and meaningful career with good pay, mainly thanks to his very good friend, Rene Terhaar, who he'd known from a young age. He had found a career path in the electrical and maintenance field working at the refineries in Houston, Texas. In 1990, Rene came through once again for him with a great new opportunity at the Texaco chemical plant in Austin Texas, before later becoming Huntsman Corp a few years afterwards. Charles’s mother Bobbie grew ill around 2003 and could no longer live alone, so he took her to Austin to care for her in her later years. In 2007 Huntsman made the decision to close the Austin plant and move to The Woodlands Tx. His son Charlie and wife Jessica stayed behind in Austin and kept the family home. This was a big change for Charles, but he’d soon learn that he would be working with a young man, who oddly enough, despite their age difference, knew a lot of the very same people that Charles had grown up around. They became quick friends. This young man was named Kevin Martin and Kevin turned out to be a wonderful friend and almost like a second son to Charles. In fact, the guys at work used to joke and call Charles El PaPe. Charles could be very stubborn and wasn't ever afraid to voice what was on his mind, but he loved all his coworkers at Huntsman. As the years passed by, he was tasked with helping with other departments and their new projects. He could talk for hours about all his new experiences with building one-of-a-kind types of new machinery for the lab techs, and for their one-of-a-kind types of experiments. He absolutely loved his job. But over the years and due to illness, he eventually had to retire in 2022. Charles was defined by his deep love for his family, his integrity, his principles, his accountability, and his excellent sense of humor. With much of that humor being amplified by his brother-in-law, Ben Hogan, who has been our family’s source of humor mixed with a large dose of mischief, but who’s also been a great source of strength when needed within our family. Many of the fun things that Charles loved to do were done with Ben Hogan and his late brother, John, right by his side. Charles enjoyed fishing, loved music, and loved taking photographs. He was an avid snow skier; scuba diver and he loved to visit Colorado often. He also enjoyed different forms of entertainment, from the various types of live shows in Vegas to concerts and live music with some of the very best bands of his era. One example he loved to point out was going to see Jimi Hendrix before the world lost him. He loved watching horror movies and TV shows with his son when they found good titles. Overall, his greatest joy was ensuring that his son had every opportunity that he had never had and, more importantly, in building a lasting foundation for his son. Charles was preceded in death by his mother, Bobbie, father, Luther, brother, John, sister, Linda, and two nephews along with several other beloved members of his extended family. He is survived by his son, Charlie Barnard II, and Charlie's wife, Jessica, his sister Gail Keith, brother-in-law Ben Hogan, his niece Amy Hogan, nephews J.J. Keith, Michael and John (Tooter) Barnard, and countless other and beloved extended family members. He also leaves behind his dearest and faithful little dog, Chewy.

“Your life mattered more than you’ll ever know, our love for you will always remain, and your memory will stay with us always and forever.”

A Celebration of Life will be held at Forest Park The Woodlands Funeral Home & Cemetery, Grand Hall, 18000 Interstate 45 South, The Woodlands, TX 77384, US, on June 29, 2026, from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm. A Catered Reception will immediately follow in the R.L. Wood event room from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm.