Charles Innis

Charles Lane Innis, Jr. was born on September 13, 1943 in Gardner, Massachusetts to Lois Frissel and Charles Innis of Westminster, Massachusetts.

He leaves a daughter Rev. Jennifer Elizabeth Innis, her husband Rev. Patrick Price and their children Abigail and Nathaniel; his son Dr. William Porterfield Innis II, his wife Anne Foss Innis, PhD, and their children Madeline and Katherine, and Thomas Nelson Innis, his wife Bethany Smyers Innis, DVM and their children Trudie and Mae; his surviving ex-wife Wendy Howard Innis, and many beloved cousins, including Calvin Brooks of Gardner, MA, Dale Brooks of Gardner, MA, and Linda Sobaje of Maui, HI.

Charles earned a Master Degree in Mechanical Engineering from UMass in 1967. During his time at UMass, he worked at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard so he could specialize in submarines. At that time, Admiral Hyman Rickover was advocating for a nuclear research submarine. Chuck was selected to work at Electric Boat on Rickover's special project, the NR-1 submarine called "Dark Shadows." Earning a PhD from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in mechanical engineering, he was one of the first doctoral students using the WPI plan to add liberal arts/humanities curriculum and community-based projects to the advanced engineering program.

Chuck worked for Morgan Construction Company in the Seals and Bearings Division, then transferred to the Morgoil Division and retired from there in 2001. During his time with Morgan Construction Company he registered nine patents in his name. Later he worked at Warren Pumps in Orange, MA and Babcock Power in Worcester. For the last chapter of his working life, Chuck was an assistant adjunct professor at WPI. Throughout his life, Charles found great joy in reading and collecting books on history and engineering.

Charles was particularly proud of the educational accomplishments of his grandmother and his mother, who both graduated from Smith College in Northampton, MA. He was also proud of his daughter, Jennifer who holds a M.Div. from Harvard University, his son Will who graduated with an MD from Johns Hopkins Medical School, and his son Tom who holds two masters degrees from Carnegie Mellon University.

Charles enjoyed traveling around the world and was proud that his children and grandchildren enjoy similar experiences.

A celebration of life will be held at 1pm on March 29 at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, 140 Shore Drive, Worcester, MA 01605.

Donations in Charles' memory can be sent to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, https://www.uucworcester.org/ or the Richards Memorial Library, the wonderful library in his small town of Paxton, MA. Charles was a library trustee with a key to the building for over 40 years. Checks may be made to Friends of Richards Memorial Library, 44 Richards Avenue, Paxton, MA 01612 https://rmlpaxton.org/donations