Charles was born in Detroit, Michigan on February 15, 1933 to Charles George and Eathel Bell (Decker) Buhlman.
Charles was preceded in death by his parents, his sisters Bette Diane Hind, Joanne Shirley Buhlman, Beverly Buhlman and Sharon Ann Kiewski and his first wife of 33 years, Alice Bernice (Jarvis) Buhlman.
He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Dorothy Jean (Smith Hendrix) Buhlman.
Children: Debby Patton, Denis Buhlman (Ruth), Dawna Cocklin, and DeAnn Buhlman.
Step Children: Rick Hendrix (Bonnie), Ron Hendrix, and Terri Hendrix Duty (Rick)
Grandchildren: Matthew Hennebury (Tiffany), Samantha Cocklin, Mitchell Cocklin, Kim Rathbone, John Hendrix (Stephanie), Melissa Hendrix, Seth Duty, Shea Duty and Ashley Duty.
And nine great grandchildren and many nieces, nephews and cousins.
Charles was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He joined the United States Air Force at age 19 and served for 20 years. He retired with the rank of Technical Sargent. During his 20 years in the Air Force he served as a Aircraft Mechanic, a Ballistic Missile Analyst Technician and Instructor and was a Flight Engineer with over 9,000 flying hours during the Vietnam War. He was awarded the National Defense Service Medal (Korean War) the Master Missileman badge, and the Air Medal (Vietnam).
While he was in the military, he had many second jobs - veterinary assistant, auto mechanic and race track manager.
After retiring from the military, Charles worked for various airlines including American Airlines, as a flight engineer and simulator instructor. He held both a commercial and a private pilot’s license.
During his life, he enjoyed restoring Corvairs, passing on his knowledge of car repair to his family, woodworking, traveling, boating, fishing, RVing, camping, attending car shows and air shows, puzzles, and exploring his family’s genealogy.
Charles and Jean were faithful members of the Senior Adult Department at Lamar Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas. Charles performed numerous support roles within their class and formed many strong friendships. His handiwork will best be remembered for the many engraved wooden name tags he gave to department members. His vast experience sparked numerous pleasant discussions, and he is sorely missed by his church family.
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