Charles Stewart

Charles Thomas Stewart

Peacefully on December 18, 2013. Age 93 years. Preceded in death by his devoted wife of 67 years, Barbara. Proud father of Joan Doust and Nancy Stewart (Brill). Loving father-in-law to Richard Doust and Bob Brill. Cherished grandfather of Carey, Liam, Matthew, Alexandra and Andrew. Beloved great-grandfather of Tess, James, Aspen, Diego, Sage, Lila and Lake. Predeceased by his parents Charles and Mary Ward Stewart, dear sisters Alice Casey and Beatrice Stewart. A proud native and long-time resident of San Francisco, later of Alta Sierra in Grass Valley and Rossmoor in Walnut Creek.

Charlie was born on July 22, 1920, the third child of first generation Irish immigrants. He was an eyewitness to history in California and in the Pacific during World War II. As a child of the depression he worked part-time with his father on the ships of a lumber company. He experienced the great Long Beach earthquake of March 10, 1933, describing the sight of a load of "lumber tossed everywhere". When his father died in 1934, Charlie interrupted his education and followed his father's path by going to sea.

On November 3, 1941, as a young engineer he boarded the tanker J.C. Fitzsimmons in Richmond, California. The U.S. Navy ordered the ship to deliver gasoline to the Russian port of Nagayevo. When Nagayevo was iced in, the ship was diverted to Vladivostok, then Manila on a route just east of Japan. On December 7th the vessel was challenged by a Japanese destroyer, but allowed to proceed. Hours later, Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The J.C. Fitzsimmons was ordered to escape, eastwards if possible. The safest route took the vessel to Attu, the Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, then towards Seattle. The tanker was delayed in the Juan de Fuca Strait, not allowed to enter inland waters as it was not expected. When it finally arrived in Seattle on December 23rd, it was completely covered in ice. As the war was starting in the Pacific, Charlie enrolled in the California Maritime Academy, emerging as an Engineering Officer in 1943. Further voyages during the war took him throughout the Pacific, primarily carrying troops on the Army transport Frederick Funston. Close to the war's end in August 1945, he was on a support ship carrying medical supplies and food to Okinawa, when the ship was diverted to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Hiroshima. He thus found himself in Japanese waters, both at the beginning and end of WWII.

During the war Charlie met Barbara Bryan through mutual friends, and married her after a whirlwind courtship of 3 months. He came ashore after the war and worked as a Stationary Engineer for Golden State and then Foremost Dairy, going on to a long career with the City and County of San Francisco, most notably as Chief Engineer at the Hall of Justice, Fire Department Saltwater Pumping Station, and Juvenile Hall. He retired in 1982.

Always an active man, Charlie relished his outings at SF golf courses and nearby racetracks. As a member of Sharp Park Golf Club he won the Director's Cup Championship in 1991, "striking a blow for the old guys". His love of horse-racing was fueled by his good friend Harry Aleo, owner of Lost in the Fog, a record-breaking sprinter. Charlie was a perennial fan of Notre Dame football, and San Francisco's Giants and Forty-Niners. Always a keen student of politics and history.

Charlie was an exceptional man. A tall handsome beacon of morality with a heart of gold. He lived by the core values he possessed: respect, kindness, integrity and humor. A gentle man and a gentleman. A Memorial Mass will be celebrated on Monday, January 27th, 11:00 AM at Church of the Epiphany, 827 Vienna Street in San Francisco. Private inurnment at Holy Cross Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Charlie's memory to Hanna Boys Center, P.O. Box 100, Sonoma, CA 95476. Express condolences at www.oakparkhillschapel.com