Obituary of Charles Henry Berry

Charles (Chuck) Henry Berry, age 91, passed away peacefully  on September 9th, 2023 in Eugene, Oregon at his home surrounded by his loving children. He was born on May 29th, 1932, in Sheridan, Arkansas, to Robert Lee and Fronia Berry. 

In March of 1952, Chuck joined the U.S. Marines. In December he was deployed to the Korean War Zone for a year.  Having served honorably for three years he was discharged in 1955.

While on a Weekend Liberty he met and fell in love with Glenda Mae Scoville at a San Diego YWCA dance. Upon returning from Korea they wed in her home town of La Junta, CO, December 17th, 1953 to begin their life together. In 1961 they moved to Eugene, where they raised their six children.

He was dedicated to his family, working overtime when necessary as a milkman for Echo Spring Dairy, to support his children and to provide for other family members. He cherished the long cross country road trips with his family to visit grandparents and distant family members and enjoyed entertaining visiting family and friends.

He coached Little League during the younger years of his sons and was proud of his team, even when he ended up in the ER after getting hit in the face as the 3rd base coach. He made sure that Dairy Ann (ice cream) became a frequent stop following every game. 

His summer months were spent tending to his vibrant garden of colorful roses, tropicana being his favorite. A yard full of fruit trees and his prize-winning concord grape vines kept him entertained in his own backyard. He brought home a juicer once his grape yield grew and canned hundreds of jars of grape juice. On the hottest days of summer after working a full day, he would come home and take his kids to a favorite swimming hole, Fern Ridge and Wildwood Falls on the Row River. He always found time to take his family to the Oregon coast, at least once every summer. 

In the winter you would find him bowling at Fairfield Lanes in Eugene, as this provided him with a sense of personal pride as he bowled perfect games, one after another. As he would mention many times, bowling alleys are a poor man’s country club. 

One of his favorite memories was entertaining two Harlem Magician teammates when they were in town performing an exhibition game. 

His faith in God provided him the strength to accept hardships over his lifetime and he was a longtime member of Berean Baptist Church. 

He is survived by his youngest brother, Fady Eugene Berry; children: Charles Randall (Elizabeth), James Keith (Debra), Ruth Ann Richards (Rodney), Kevin Douglas, Darren Curtis (Deborah) and Dana Berry Paperman (Dave). Grandchildren: Christopher (Sara), Lisa Scholl (Ryan), Joshua, Rachel Arbogast (Travis), Daniel (Ariah), David (Serena), Kristin Wasson (Jason), Cassy Berry-Crain (John), Gabrielle Miller (Dan), Sam and Edna Mae and many great grandchildren. 

Family and friends are invited to the graveside service at 11:00am, October 5th at the Willamette National Cemetery to reminisce and honor the life of Charles Berry. 

The family is requesting donations be made to the Eugene Meals on Wheels program, a lifeline for so many.