Charles Larry Runyon

1938 - 2020

RUNYON, Charles Larry Oct 19, 1938 Feb 15, 2020 Charles L. "Larry" Runyon, died peacefully February 15, 2020 at the age of 81. He was born to Alma Frances Bowman Runyon & John Claude Runyon October 19, 1938 in Lexington, KY, where he graduated from Lafayette High School in 1956. He is survived by Marcia - his beloved wife of 62 years; 3 children - Stephen, Lisa & Daniel; 5 grandchildren - David, Katherine, John, Craig & Peyton; 1 greatgrandchild Rose; half-sister Cheryl; and his much loved rescue-dog Sweetie. He served in the Marine Corps & Army Reserves, enlisting Mar '56 in the Marines as a student reservist at the age of 17, served in the USMCR for nearly 4 years, honorably discharged Dec 15, 1959 & transferred to the US Army on the same day due to a need for his skills as a surgical technician, served 3 years in the Army Reserves; honorably discharged from the US Armed Forces Feb. 2, 1963. He was hired by IBM Lexington in early 1959 & worked for them for over 35 years - first on the assembly line, later as a technician in the metallurgical lab, then finally as a salesman. He then transferred to the new Austin site Dec. 1968 in the first wave of employees, where he worked in new product planning & release, retiring in 1995. He supported & nurtured his family in N Austin for the next 52 years, except for a brief transfer to S Florida & a 4 yr assignment in Tokyo. Runyon had a wide variety of exciting jobs & hobbies throughout his life. In early high school, he developed a love for electronics & became ham radio operator W5SBE in the mid 50's. He had a passion for high speed Morse code (60+wpm), serving as a CW net control op for many years in the 70's & 80's, & enjoying CW "ragchewing" with friends until his late 70's. He did many free "phone patches" to allow servicemen stationed overseas to talk with their loved ones back home & helped with emergency messages as well - once receiving a call for emergency help from Colombia, he arranged for emergency delivery of life-saving medicine by an airline pilot, saving 5 children's lives. He was an accomplished photographer, working in his teens for a local professional photographer taking portraits & wedding photos, as well as being sports photographer for his high school yearbook. He enjoyed the hobby for the rest of his life. He also had an engineering job as a teen at a local radio station. While attending college, he took a summer job in Oak Ridge, TN, and on a blind date in May 1957, he met the girl destined to be the love of his life. Married on Sept 14, 1957, Marcia was attending nursing school, which led to Larry taking a job as a surgical technician, helping to perform the first tests of the experimental heart-lung machine which was destined to help save countless lives in the coming decades. He was an avid pilot for most of his life, earning pilot's license & later instrument rating in his 20's; and was co-owner of several airplanes often flying the family on vacations. After raising their children, he & Marcia accepted a 4 year posting to Tokyo, Japan in 1986; which they described as one of the happiest times in their lives, taking numerous vacation trips around East Asia and Australia. He enjoyed sports cars & motorcycles, and for many years was a familiar sight driving to & from work in the 1960 Porsche 356B bought new in 1959 by his father. He recently sold the car, called "John Claude"(named after his father) to a local collector for restoration & display. He enjoyed hunting & fishing with his sons and father-in-law, and went on many memorable trips with them. After 42 years in their north Austin home, he & Marcia moved a few miles to Buckner Villas, where they lived peacefully for his final 22 months. Relatives and friends are invited to attend his memorial service Sunday, March 15, 2020 from 2:00 3:00 at Buckner Villas, 11110 Tom Adams Dr, Austin 78753.