Charles B. Lapham

Charles B. Lapham passed away peacefully on Saturday, September 20, 2025, in Gladwin, Michigan. A Celebration of Life Service will be held in his honor on Tuesday, October 14th, at 1 pm at the Christler Funeral Home-Prudenville Chapel.

Charles was born on May 31, 1940, in Pontiac, Michigan, to Byron and Ruth (Pelzer) Lapham. He spent his adolescent years growing up in the Houghton Lake area, and at age 13, he began working at a local marina (later known as Lapham Marina when his older brother Tom and wife Jan purchased it in 1970). Charles was always good at saving money and was among the first in his friend group to buy a car. He had many good memories of his teenage years and of graduating from Houghton Lake High School in 1959. A few years later, he met and married his first wife, Patricia Geiger, and they moved to California. They had 3 girls together – Renee, Diane, and Teri. During this time, Charles began working at the Kaiser Steel Mill in Fontana, CA. He started by "pushing a broom" then went on to complete multiple training programs within the union, including his Machinist Apprenticeship, Tool & Die Maker, CNC Tool Programmer, and eventually achieving Master Machinist level. In his 30s, he divorced his first wife and married his second wife, Margaret (Peggy) Irwin, and they had a son, Mark. After the steel plant closed, Charles worked with brother-in-law Richard Peretin in a family machine shop for a few years. During this time, Charles was divorced and then married his third wife, Deborah Brown - together they had a daughter, Karen. Charles was fortunate to have good references, and that, combined with a unique skill set, qualified him to work for government contractor Developmental Sciences in Ontario, CA. He became a trusted team member and went on to build multiple prototype parts for their secret "drone" program. Among the most challenging and notable were the rotating camera mounts under the drone's nose. After many years of planning and saving, he was able to retire in 2004 and move back to Michigan. He purchased land and built his retirement home here in Prudenville – the place he felt happy and at peace among family and friends.

Charles is preceded in death by his mother, father, and older brother Tom Lapham. Charles is also preceded in death by all three of his former wives – Patricia [Patty] Geiger (Lapham-Cooper), Margaret [Peggy] Irwin-Lapham, and Deborah [Debbie] Brown-Lapham.

Charles is survived by siblings Ann Lapham of Missouri, Richard Lapham of Merritt, MI, Linda (Tom) Pilgrim of Texas and Brenda (Richard) Peretin of California, and John (Beth) Lapham of Indiana, as well as many beloved nieces and nephews.

Charles is also survived by his five children: Renee McMullen (husband Michael), Diane Lapham-DeLaCruz (husband Agnacio), Teri Thomas (husband Todd), Mark Lapham (wife Ruby), and Karen Lapham, all living in California. He has ten grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren: Grant, Sean, Arthur, Angela, Aaron, Taylor, Dylan, Kara, Lennox, Aurora, Ashton, Parker, Gunner, Walker, Kaine, Hailey, Gabriella, Layla, Leon, Lucinda, all living in California.

The family also wishes to recognize Mary Urbanski of Gladwin, who took care of Charles in her own home for the last 3 years of his life – for that, we are eternally grateful.