WENDELL CHARLES

Wendell Charles, 75, passed away July 10, at Heartland of Perrysburg Hospice. He was born December 18, 1945 in Kingsport, Tennessee, the son of Frank and Marie Charles.

Wendell grew up in Kingsport, and graduated from Dobyn’s Bennett High School in 1964; after which he attended East Tennessee State University.

He moved to Carleton, Michigan, where he raised his family and was involved in the local school board and a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church.

Wendell began his career as a corrections officer at Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee. From there he moved to Lima, Ohio, and worked at Allen Correctional Facility, before moving to Rossford, and retiring from the Toledo Correctional Institute in 2010.

He loved to travel, with annual trips to Nassau, Bahamas and Colorado. In Nassau, he collected unique wood carvings from the straw market that he shared with family. Colorado offered small mountain towns and mountain casinos to visit with family.

He is survived by his daughter, Ondrea (Mike) Matthews, Colorado; son, Sean (Tammy) Charles, South Carolina; sisters, Lela Shupe of Missouri; Frances (Harold) Shoemaker of Tennessee, and three grandchildren, Nicholas Charles, Emily Charles and Ethan Matthews. He was preceded in death

He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Gloria Frye.

No services are scheduled at this time. He will be laid to rest in his family plot at Oak Hill Memorial Park, Kingsport.