Charles W. Christensen

Chuck Christensen, a long-time resident of La Jolla, California, was born on August 27, 1923, in Bronx, New York, as Charles Warren Brophy. When he was four years old his father, Dr. Charles Joseph Brophy, died. After his father's death, he moved to San Diego County with his mother, where he lived for the balance of his life. He died on December 17, 2011, in La Jolla, California.
His mother, Eva S. Brophy, was an owner of the Pine Hills Lodge in the backcountry of San Diego County. She sold the Pines Hills Lodge to his eventual wife's family, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Kruger. It was in Pine Hills that Chuck met and fell in love with his future wife, Barbara Louise Kruger.
Chuck was raised in San Diego County. He attended Hoover High School and he graduated in 1941. He also attended San Diego State University, later transferring to the University of Southern California, where he studied civil engineering. He was a member of the Sigma Lambda Fraternity at USC. He graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor's of Science Degree in civil engineering after his return from World War II in 1949.
He served in the Army, as a Sargent, during World War II in the European theatre, ending with his honorable discharge in April of 1946.
On August 27, 1946, he married Barbara Louise Kruger, of San Diego, his Pine Hills' neighbor and sweetheart, at the Mary, Star of the Sea Catholic Church in La Jolla. After marriage they moved to Los Angeles, where they resided until he graduated from the University of Southern California with a BSCE in civil engineering in 1949. They returned to San Diego with the first of their four children in 1949. In 1960, he and his family moved to La Jolla where he lived until his death.
In 1951, Chuck went to work for the engineering department of the City of San Diego. In 1952 he became registered as a civil engineer in the State of California. Later in 1952 he went to work for the civil engineering firm of Freeland, Peterson & Evenson in San Diego. He soon became a partner in the firm, then named Freeland, Evenson, Christensen & Boas. The firm later became Charles W. Christensen & Associates. These firms were responsible for much of the civil engineering, land surveying and land planning for the communities of Clairemont, San Carlos, University City and Rancho Bernardo in San Diego County. He was recognized as an expert in the areas of civil engineering and land surveying and testified in hundreds of court cases. He later formed the firm of Christensen Engineering and Surveying in San Diego, where he worked until his death, with his two sons, Tony and Patrick Christensen, who continue the work started by their father. He recently received a Certificate of Recognition for 60 years of service to the profession of civil engineering from the State Board of Registration.
Chuck was a proud member of the Downtown Rotary Club, a Paul Harris Fellow, and a past president of the San Diego Chapter of Civil Engineers and Land Surveyors. He was also a past state president of the California Council of Civil Engineers and Land Surveyors. He was a member of ASCE. He loved golfing with his sons in La Jolla and in Palm Desert as well as his time on his boat.
He was married to his wife, Barbara, for 60 years at the time of her death in 2006. His four children, Charles B. Christensen Sr. of Point Loma, Dr. Antony K. Christensen of Scripps Ranch, Angela L. DerOvanesian of San Diego and Patrick F. Christensen of La Jolla; twelve grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren all survive him.
A rosary will be held at the El Camino Chapel in Sorrento Valley on Tuesday evening, December 27, 2011, at 5:00 P.M. His funeral mass will be held at 10:00 A.M. on December 28, 2011, at Mary, Star of the Sea Catholic Church in La Jolla. His nephew, the Most Reverend Bishop Peter Christensen of Wisconsin, will preside over the Mass. There will be a reception following the mass. There will also be a private interment after the reception.
In lieu of flowers, it was Chuck's wish that donations be made to the St. Germaine Children's Charity, P.O. Box 2141, La Jolla, California 92038-2141, or contact St. Germaine at: StGermaineChildrens
Charity.com.