Charles R. Capps

Charles R. Capps, 78, passed away on March 6, 2015 after a sudden and brief battle with lung cancer. He was born on August 8, 1936 in Idabel, Oklahoma to Odessa and Eugene Capps. Charles is survived by: his wife of 58 years, Kathleen Phillips Capps; sons, Chuck Capps of Aiken, South Carolina (and his wife, Donna (Fortner) Capps), Russ Capps of Nassau Bay, Texas (and his wife, Tami Heese), and Jerry Capps of Austin, Texas (and his wife, Kelly Jones Capps); grandsons Charlie Capps of Aiken, South Carolina (and his wife, Lindsey Smith Capps) and Cory Capps of Nassau Bay, Texas; granddaughters Katy Capps and Lane Capps of Austin, Texas; great grandchild, Charles Caden Capps of Aiken, South Carolina; his sister, Juanita (Capps) White of Texarkana, Texas, and extended family and many dear friends.

After attending East Central College in Ada, Oklahoma on a football scholarship, he joined the U.S. Air Force where he was trained on maintaining radar sites and played basketball. He used his communication and electronics knowledge to build a career of over 40 years in the U.S. space program culminating as a ground controller in Mission Control at Johnson Space Center. He garnered many awards and commendations throughout his career including the prestigious Snoopy Award and the Manned Spacecraft Award. Beginning just prior to his retirement in 2000, he and Kathleen traveled the globe together, visiting more than 45 countries and culminating with a trip to India in 2014. He and Kathy were among the early members of "Z Krewe" in Galveston, where he served as "Big Daddy" in 2001. His love of golf took him to the greens of St. Andrews and for many years he enjoyed attending The Masters with his son Chuck. He will be remembered by many for his generous nature, loving and optimistic spirit, great stories, and booming voice. A memorial will be held on Saturday, March 21, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. at Crowder Funeral Home, 111 East Medical Center Blvd, Webster, Texas 77598, followed by "one-hell-of-a-party" for friends and family who want to celebrate his life. In lieu of flowers those wishing to make a memorial donation in Charles Capps' memory may do so to the Challenger Center at https://donate.challenger.org/.