Charles R. Furlong

1932 - 2015

Charles Robert Furlong, 83
YORK - Charles Robert Furlong, 83, of 7 Tide Meadow Lane, York, died on Nov. 27, 2015, after a long struggle with Alzheimer's disease. An environmentalist and outdoorsman, he was a former assessor of the First Parish Church, and a member of the University of Maine Alumni Association, the York Trust, and the Pleasant River Lake Association in Beddington.
Born on Aug. 24, 1932, in his grandmother's home in Lykens, Pa., Charles ("Chuck") was the son of Charles R. Furlong Sr. and Blanche A. (Gething) Furlong. During World War II, the Furlongs moved onto a farm owned by an elderly Quaker bachelor. As a young boy, Chuck plowed the fields using a horse and old wooden plow. He and his mother planted the crops, cut asparagus, harvested corn, picked berries, milked cows, and collected eggs, which they sold locally, while his father taught school and worked at an airplane factory.
After the war, the Furlong family moved to Vineland, N.J., where Chuck played baseball for a winning Vineland High School team; after graduating in 1950, he enrolled in the University of Maine's School of Forestry, a decision that molded and directed his life. Chuck was five-foot-six-inches tall and 130 pounds when he arrived on campus; he grew six inches the first year and was always proud that he maintained his 185-pound weight his entire life. The forestry program required a summer camp for freshmen, and Chuck decided to ask the U-Maine football coach if he could work out with the team. He became a walk-on and played quarterback for four of Maine's championship years. He joined Beta Theta Pi; his fraternity brothers and teammates remained close friends throughout his life.
Chuck spent the summer after his freshman year manning a Montana fire tower. He used to say that he saw no humans, only wildlife, that summer, so he thought often of the Chi Omega from South Portland, he had met on campus. After Elizabeth "Beth" Leighton graduated from U-Maine in 1952, Chuck and Beth eloped, with Beth's brother, Jerry Leighton, as witness. During Chuck's last two years at the university, the Furlongs lived with U-Maine Professor of Biology Emeritus Edith Patch. Chuck graduated in 1954, and worked for the Boston-Maine Railroad, then Western Electric, when he inspected paper products for telephone books. He later transferred to AT&T. While working in Basking Ridge, N.J., and New York City, Chuck did graduate work in engineering at New York University.
The Furlongs have four daughters: Cynthia, Susanne, Betsy, and Joy.
In 1973, they moved to England, where Chuck supervised production of transoceanic telephone cable in conjunction with British Rail. "That was the best part of my professional life," Chuck often said. The family lived in West Dean, a small village outside Salisbury, where they enjoyed rural English life, made life-long friends, and traveled frequently.
After four years abroad, the Furlongs moved to Whitehouse Station, N.J. In 1986, Chuck retired from AT&T and moved to York, near Beth's brothers, Verdi and Jerry Leighton, and their families. For two decades, Chuck worked as a consultant for transoceanic cable projects, traveled extensively, and enjoyed fishing, hunting, family life, and time on Pleasant River Lake.
After the Iron Curtain fell, Chuck volunteered with the Citizens for Democracy Corps, a State Department organization of retired executives who helped former Communist government-run companies privatize and adopt capitalistic business methods. Chuck served in Poland, Estonia, and Romania, made lasting friendships there, and witnessed historic events. In Estonia he mediated a skirmish between Estonians and their former Russian authorities. In Romania, the Furlongs attended an Eastern Orthodox cathedral's first Easter service after 40 years of Communist rule and visited with a Christian cell that had met secretly in a warehouse during those years. These and other experiences had a lasting impact on Chuck's life; he cherished a letter from President George W. Bush thanking him for his service.
Chuck helped restore York's First Parish Church and construct the Nubble Visitors' Center. He and Beth were avid environmentalists and gardeners, whose home was featured on York Garden Club tours. Chuck was an organic gardener long before it became a popular trend. Chuck also worked tirelessly to monitor water quality and salmon populations in Maine's lakes.
Chuck maintained his interest in forestry throughout his life. He taught his family woods lore, boating, hiking, fishing, shooting, and survivor skills during vacations on Pleasant River Lake. He was a very proud supporter of the University of Maine, its Honors College, and sports programs. The Furlongs were especially proud when two daughters, two granddaughters, and nieces and nephews enrolled at U-Maine.
Chuck is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; daughters Cynthia Reynolds of Ann Arbor, Mich., Susanne Stanley of Kennebunk, Betsy Waldheim of Hampstead, Md., and Joy Dalley of Bound Brook, N.J., sons-in-law Mark Reynolds, Gregory Stanley, Randall Waldheim, and Scott Dalley; six grandchildren, Jennifer Holt, Hannah Whitney, Charles Reynolds, Benjamin Reynolds, Elizabeth Reynolds; six great-grandchildren; his sister Joan, and his brother Fred. He was deeply loved and will be greatly missed.
Funeral services will be held at the First Parish Church, 180 York St., York, at a time to be announced. Lucas & Eaton Funeral Home, 91 Long Sands Rd., York, is directing arrangements. Visit www.
lucaseatonfuneralhome.com

In lieu of flowers, contributions could be made to the
University of Maine
UMaine Foundation
Buchanan Alumni House
Two Alumni Place
Orono, Maine 04469;
Downeast Salmon Federation
187 Main Street
Columbia Falls, Maine 04623;
or the Alzheimer's Association.