Charles Henry Barndt

1932 - 2023

News story
By Mark Zaborney
Blade Staff Writer

WAYNE, Ohio - Charles Henry Barndt, who cared for generations of families as a funeral director in the Wood County village that became his hometown, died April 9 at Wood County Hospital, Bowling Green. He was 90.

He had congestive heart failure, said Dannielle Sidle, his granddaughter, who became Barndt Funeral Home's owner in May, 2021. He was a caregiver for his wife, Barbara, during her illness of several years, and his health declined after she died Jan. 31.

Mrs. Sidle assumed ownership from her father, Doug Barndt, with whom she runs the business. His parents, the elder Barndts, turned ownership over to him in September, 1994, having bought the business in 1961.

The elder Mr. Barndt - best known as Charlie - cut a memorable figure, not least for the pencil-line mustache atop his upper lip and his ever-present cigar, replaced in recent decades by a toothpick.

He kept his state licenses in force as a funeral director and embalmer through 2018.

"He was very much active in the business, even when he wasn't owner," Mrs. Sidle said. "He would still come in every day and do what needed to be done and make sure we were doing everything correctly."

She witnessed his sensitivity, "how to treat families, all families, as our own, and how to make them feel loved and taken care of by us.

"He would go above and beyond. The funeral home and his family were his pride and joy," she said. "All the stories I'm seeing on Facebook and the comments on his obit, all the people and lives he touched. He was a natural at it. A lot of people are commenting on how much easier he made the process. He brought a sense of lightness to the situation."

Many referred to a teasing orneriness.

"He WAS one of an ornery kind! He was always a kind staple around town. He didn't even have to say a word to tease you," one commenter wrote.

Another wrote: "When I first moved to Wayne and met Charlie, I just wasn't quite sure what to think, but I quickly learned to give him the berries right back and from then on enjoyed our fun exchanges."

Mrs. Sidle said: "He liked that best, when someone could give it back to him as good as he gave it."

Wayne's welcome sign has grabbed visitors' attention since the 1950s. The 1977 version said, "Welcome To Wayne. Population 948 NICE PEOPLE & one sorehead."

In June, 1977, an election was held, and Mr. Barndt bested three others to become the first official sorehead.

Others have held the title in what became an annual contest. One online commenter wrote: "What can a person say about the friendliest 'Sore Head' Wayne has ever known!"

"He was so proud of that," his daughter, Dianne Barndt, said. "He was always that guy. I looked at his high school yearbook, and it talked about what a big personality he had and how funny he was.

"He was sometimes gruff on the outside, and teasing all the time, but he was a huge softy. He cried at everything," Ms. Barndt said.

Witnessing an achievement of a family member or a Wayne neighbor, "he cried with pride," she said, "and I think that's what made him so endearing to so many people."

Born July 8, 1932, in Cleveland to Florence and Harry Barndt, he was a 1950 graduate of Collinwood High School in Cleveland and served stateside in the Army during the Korean War.

He received a bachelor's degree in 1958 from Ohio University and was a 1959 graduate of Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science. After an internship at a Cleveland mortuary, he and his wife bought Baublitz Funeral Home in Wayne, which until 1968 was called Baublitz-Barndt Funeral Home.

The early years were lean. He drove a school bus and had other jobs to support the family.

"He would get emotional when he would talk about it," Mrs. Sidle said. "It was a hard time for them."

Yet when a young mother whose husband died wanted an expensive casket and service, he refused to make the sale.

"He knew it was wrong, and he didn't want it to be a hardship for her," Ms. Barndt said. "He was very compassionate."

They bought the former Sage Funeral Home in nearby Bradner in 1968, according to a history on the Barndt website, and consolidated operations at their Wayne funeral home 11 years later.

He was a member of the Albert Bowe American Legion Post 338. He and his wife volunteered in their church, Wayne United Methodist, and with Boy Scout and Girl Scout activities. He coached youth sports.

"They were such fixtures in the community," Ms. Barndt said. "That was important to them, civic engagement. That's something they always did and taught us was really important."

He and the former Barbara Louise Seifert married April 15, 1959. She died Jan. 31, 2023.

Surviving are his sons, Doug and Dave Barndt; daughter, Dianne Barndt; nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Friends will be received from 5-7 p.m. Monday at Barndt Funeral Home in Wayne, where funeral services will begin at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

The family suggests tributes to Wayne Public Library and the Victory Center in Lucas County's Sylvania Township.