Charles Anthony Spadaro of Thousand Oaks, California, passed away October 20, 2013. He was 90 years old.
Born Carmelo Antonio Spadaro in Norwich, New York, on January 10, 1923, he was the second of five children born to Sicilian immigrants who came to America in 1920. He later legally changed his name to Charles Anthony.
At age 13 Charles discovered the game of golf, which he continued to play throughout his long life. He graduated from Norwich High School in 1941.
In 1943, he enlisted in U.S. Army, serving as a radioman/lineman in the Signal Corps with the 63rd Infantry Division. Non-combat injuries kept him stateside until he sailed with the 63rd to France in January 1945. He served at the front lines in Germany in early 1945 and sustained shrapnel injuries for which he was awarded the Purple Heart, and later served in the postwar army of occupation in Germany. Following active duty, he worked as a civilian in Germany and studied at the American University in Biarritz, France.
Upon his return to the U.S., he studied electromechanical engineering at Syracuse University. He married fellow Norwich native Elizabeth Ann Miner on January 31, 1948. After graduating from Syracuse University in 1950, he began working as an aerospace engineer. Charles and Beth moved back to Norwich, their family eventually growing to seven children.
In 1960 he was asked to open his company’s west coast regional sales office, and so he moved his young family to Granada Hills, California. He continued working in sales and marketing in the aerospace industry until retiring in 1992 at the age of 69.
Over the years he was very active in the Men’s Club, Golf Club, and as an usher at St. John Baptist de la Salle Catholic Church in Granada Hills. Beth passed away in 1993. They had been married for 46 years.
Charlie married Joan Skinner in 1994. In 1995 they moved to Thousand Oaks, and became active parishioners and volunteers at St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church. Charlie was well-known throughout the congregation, as an usher and member of the Men’s Club, as well as the “candyman” who always carried treats in his jacket pocket for the younger parishioners.
Late in 1995, Charlie lost most of his vision to macular degeneration. Having only a bit of peripheral vision in one eye did not stop him from living independently, continuing his woodworking, volunteering and ushering at church. Nor did it stop him from continuing to play his beloved game of golf all the way to the end of his life, which he did with the aid of a white stick laid on the grass that allowed him to line up his shots. In this manner he regularly bested his opponents, who were frequently chagrined to lose to the blind man.
Joan passed away in 2008. In 2011, at the age of 88, Charlie was honored by the St. Paschal Men’s Club as its “Member of the Year” for displaying courage and good cheer in the face of his disabilities. He traveled to Norwich to attend his 70th high school reunion in 2011, and went again in 2012 for the 71st. In July 2013, Charlie moved into a senior apartment complex in Thousand Oaks. He greatly enjoyed his new home, making new friends and working out in the gym almost every day, remaining vital and engaged to the very end of his life.
His abundant energy belied his age. Blindness, hearing problems, and the other ailments did not slow him down at all. He especially loved making people laugh, and he never failed to engage all who crossed his path, every day of his life.
His last day was spent in the loving embrace of his family and friends as they mourned the untimely loss of his son Chuck, who passed away at the age of 58 on October 15, 2013. Hours after parting from his family on that bittersweet day of remembrance, Charles passed away peacefully in his sleep.
Charles is survived by six of his children: Steve Spadaro, Rick Spadaro, Jo Ann (Spadaro) Burnett, Mark Spadaro, Martin Spadaro, and Mary Spadaro; sixteen grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; his four sisters, Caroline Parise, Joan Yacono, Nanette Panaro, and Cecilia Zieno; as well as numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his first wife Beth, his second wife Joan, and his son Chuck.
He will be greatly missed.
Memorial services were held at St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church in Thousand Oaks, California; interment at San Fernando Mission Cemetery was private. Those wishing to honor Charles’ memory may make donations to Foundation Fighting Blindness, P.O. Box 17279, Baltimore, MD 21297-0495; www.blindness.org.