CHARLES GARRETT

CHARLES GARRETT 01/23/1948 - 08/04/2025 Charles Riley Garrett, 77, Blue Springs, Mo., died August 4, 2025, from complications of Parkinson's disease with dementia. Born January 23, 1948, in Springfield, Mo., Charley was the oldest of five children of LouEllen and Russell Garrett. A 1966 graduate of Hillcrest High School, Springfield, Mo., he earned a National Merit Scholarship Program Letter of Commendation. He received a B.A. in Philosophy, English & History from Drury University, Springfield, in 1970; a M.A. in English from The University of Iowa in 1973; and then completed all coursework in The University of Iowa's English Ph.D. program. He taught English at both high school and college levels. Charley later dedicated three decades to federal service with the Social Security Administration in Kansas City, Mo., retiring as the Regional Manager of Material Resources. He was truly proud that his public service career helped Americans in need. He volunteered for many years at Wayside Waifs, working to find homes for shelter cats. He also served as a past president of his local ACLU chapter. Charley cherished time spent supporting and coaching many seasons for his children Josh and Sara in basketball, baseball and softball,and then proudly watching them both compete at college-level basketball. He served on the board of Blue Springs Athletic Association and was founding president of Blue Springs South Booster Club. As a MSHSAA-certified official, he refereed countless area basketball games. He loved literature, politics, poetry, over-sixty men's softball, Bob Dylan, British comedy, film, cats, medieval studies, Civil War history, the St. Louis Cardinals, theoretical physics, and the quest for a final unified theory of the cosmos. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Linda Johnsen Garrett, Blue Springs; son Josh Garrett and wife Lori, Wildwood, Mo.; brother Don Garrett and wife Karin, brother Wayne Garrett, and sister Nancy Garrett, all of Springfield; and granddaughters Hannah and Heidi Garrett, Wildwood. He was preceded in death by his beloved daughter Sara Garrett; and his sister Susie Garrett. A gathering of family and friends to honor Charley's memory will be held at a later date. Midsummer next year, Charley's and Sara's ashes will be scattered together in a wildflower meadow nestled high in the forested Wyoming mountains, in a place filled with beautiful family memories.