Charles Allen Hawkins

1937 - 2021

Charles Allen Hawkins

Greenville - Charles Allen Hawkins, 83, died February 22, 2021, after a long battle with dementia and Alzheimer's Disease. Charles was born on March 1, 1937 in Greenville, SC. He graduated from Parker High School in 1955, and he graduated from Clemson University, ROTC, in 1959, earning a degree in electrical engineering. Also in 1959, he married Sarah Jennings, was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Army, and began an active-duty assignment with the Army Security Agency until 1962, serving at Fort Devens, MA and Fort Bragg, NC.

After active duty, Charles briefly returned to Greenville, where he worked at the J.E. Sirrine Company. In 1963, Charles and his family moved to Virginia where he went to work for the Army Security Agency, working on several successful developments of Army tactical intelligence and related electronic warfare systems.

In 1968, Charles was selected by the Department of Defense to attend graduate school at the University of Rochester's Simon School of Management, with emphasis on Systems Analysis, where he received a Master of Science degree in management.

In 1976, Charles joined the Office of the Secretary of Defense with management responsibilities in the intelligence discipline. In 1981, upon appointment as Director of Tactical Intelligence Systems, he became a member of the Senior Executive Service, followed by subsequent appointments as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence. Both Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush later honored him with Distinguished Executive awards.

In June 1993, then Secretary of Defense William Perry appointed Charles to be his Special Assistant for Intelligence Oversight. He was the Department's senior representative to the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board on intelligence oversight matters. Charles retired in March 1995 after more than thirty years of federal service with the Department of Defense.

After retirement, Charlie enjoyed playing golf, tinkering with computers and old trucks, and being a faithful fan of Clemson football and the Washington Nationals. He is survived by his wife of sixty-one (61) years, Sarah, sisters, Margaret Durham (Jimmy), Karolyn Edwards (Johnny), Katherine Burry (Roddy), son Brian Hawkins (Susan, deceased), daughter Sandra Ingley (Bill), grandchildren Jordan (Maddie), Jacob, Brandon, Meagan (Robert), and Patrick, and his great grandson Will.

Family will receive visitors at Westville Funeral Home, 6010 White Horse Road, Greenville, SC 29611, on Thursday, February 25, 2021 between 2:00-3:00 pm. In lieu of ?owers, the family would appreciate any donations to Kindred Hospice of Greenville, SC, kindredhospice.com or Capitol Caring Hospice of Northern Virginia, www.CapitalCaring.org.