Dr. Charles Herschel King

Dr. Charles Herschel (Hersch) King
Former long-time resident of Salisbury, Dr. Charles Herschel (Hersch) King died July 3, 2023 of complications from Parkinson's disease. Born December 13, 1931 in Drexel Hill, PA, he was the son of Daniel Denoon and Mary Beulah (Culpepper) King. The family moved to Portsmouth, VA where
Dr. King completed high school before entering the University of Maryland (B.S. Biology), graduating the School of Medicine there in 1956.
In 1956, he married Lucy Lawson with whom he had two children: Elizabeth Frances (Rhodes) and William Daniel. After his internship at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
and residency at the University of Maryland, he served from 1958-1960 as Chief of Anesthesiology in the U.S. Air Force at McDill Air Force Base, Tampa, FL.
Most of his 30-year career in anesthesia was spent in Maryland, primarily at Peninsula General Hospital (now Tidal Health Peninsula Regional Medical Center), serving on the Executive Committee of Medical Staff and as Chief of Department of Anesthesiology. His professional memberships included the American Society of Anesthesiologists and Alpha Omega Alpha national medical honor society.
He was a member of St. Alban's Episcopal Church, and it was there he met his second wife, Liz (Augusta) Vesecky. They married in 1979, and after Dr. King's retirement in 1987, followed their passion for sailing to Southampton, England, where they moved aboard their 36' sloop, SATORI, and cruised the south coast of England, the Biscay coasts of Spain and Portugal and the Virgin Islands, before returning to the Chesapeake Bay. In the summer of 1988, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and gave up the sailing life to head West, settling in Ashland, OR, where he pursued many interests-- including clay sculpting, traveling, N-gauge model train layouts, and above all reading. His active life included participation in SOLIR (Southern Oregon Learning in Retirement), board membership in the ACLU, and the Executive Committee of the Sierra Club, Rogue Valley chapter.
In 2007 he underwent DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) surgery at OHSC (Oregon Health Sciences University), Portland, OR.
In 2015 he and Liz, along with stepson and eventual caregiver Franklin Wilkerson, moved to upcountry Maui. Hersch is also survived by his daughter Elizabeth Rhodes, son Dan King, grandchildren Garrett, Quinn, and Holland--and the many friends who will miss his keen intellect and joy of life. He wished that any memorial contributions be made to OHSU, Department of Neurology, in honor of Dr. John Nutt, who monitored his Parkinson's for so many years.