Charles Einsiedler

1913 - 2016

SCARBOROUGH - Charles Einsiedler, 102, passed away Monday, Sept. 5, 2016 in Scarborough, just days shy of his 103rd birthday.

He was born on his family's small farm in Stirling, N.J., on Sept. 29, 1913, to Stephanie Ruegg Einsiedler and Charles Einsiedler, who had emigrated from Switzerland.

Charlie attended local schools, taking the train to the nearest high school in Summit. He attended Cornell University graduating from the engineering college in 1936. He went on to work at KW Battery Company in Brooklyn, N.Y. where he met his future wife, Betty. During World War II, Charlie volunteered for the Navy but was declared 4F due to a heart condition. He joined the Coast Guard Reserve and further served his country through his engineering work in coal mines and on submarines at the Portsmouth Navy Yard.

His engineering career took Betty and him back to New Jersey and then to Rhode Island where he lived for 57 years. There he founded a hydraulics and pneumatics firm that featured his patented invention, the "Auto-Clamp." Charlie was the consummate researcher and tinkerer. He built his first car at the age of 12 and continued to work on models for more efficient engines into his 100s. At the age of 88, he and Betty traveled to Loma Linda University Medical Center in California to participate in ground-breaking proton cancer therapy, forming a special bond with his fellow cancer survivors. In 2010, he and Betty moved to Piper Shores, Maine to be closer to family.

Charlie loved sports, particularly baseball and skiing, telling many stories about riding the train to Canada and New Hampshire to ski and his days of playing and coaching baseball. A favorite memory was attending his first major league game (unbeknownst to his parents) at Fenway Park in the 1920s when his family's car broke down, stranding them in Boston waiting for a part to come from Detroit. Charlie coached Little League teams for years, and was particularly proud of the creation of the Warwick Little League "farm system" so that any child who wanted to play on a team could be accommodated. He also conducted an informal game in his backyard every evening for neighborhood children. Still dressed in his shirt and tie, he pitched to each participant until he or she ended on a "good hit."

His family was most important to Charlie. He loved seeing them grow up and was committed to providing a college education for his children and grandchildren. He proudly supported them in their endeavors attending graduations and cheering them on at sporting events and programs, from ski and fencing meets, to baseball games, concerts and more. His only request for his 100th birthday was to have a chart with birthdays so he could better keep track of everyone. But most of all, he was devoted to his wife of over 70 years, Betty, who was the love of his life.

He was a man of good cheer and great integrity, gracious to family, friends, and all he met. Charles is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; his children and their spouses, Ann and Richard Crumb, Middlebury, Vt., Charles and Linda Einsiedler, Falmouth, and John and Stephanie Einsiedler, Kennebunk; grandchildren, Stephanie and Jeffrey Rea, Richard and Kerstyn Crumb, Alexander Crumb, Christen and Derek Shepherd, Charles III (Spike) and Sonja Einsiedler, James Einsiedler, and Diane Einsiedler and Luke Einsiedler; and great-grandchildren, Sam, Katherine, and Henry Rea, Taylor, Noah, and Elizabeth Shepherd, and Charles Einsiedler IV.

The family would like to thank the nurses and staff of Piper Shores and HomeInstead in Scarborough for their extraordinary service and care.

A memorial service is planned for mid-October in New Jersey under the direction of Hobbs Funeral Home, South Portland. In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial gift to Loma Linda University Medical Center or Cornell University, College of Mechanical Engineering.