Memories of Charles "Chuck" Henry Hodson

In memory of

Charles "Chuck" Henry Hodson

San Clemente, CA, USA

December 6, 1929 - November 20, 2020

Dec 6, 1929 - Nov 20, 2020

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Carol Brown

2019, San Clemente, CA, USA

Tesla ride with Cousin Mike Platoff! Dad's comment, "I don't think I'd want a car that's smarter than me!"

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Carol Brown

2020, San Clemente, CA, USA

Usher Hodson visit

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Carol Brown

2020, San Clemente, CA, USA

Visiting with sister, Annabel

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Please consider a gift to The Parkinson's Foundation.

$600.00

Raised by 7 people

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Carol Brown

2019, San Clemente, CA, USA

Our last Christmas all together as a family

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Carol Brown

2019

Birthday Boy!

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Carol Brown

1969

Wedding of Charles Henry Hodson to Marilyn Jeanne Dufford

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Diana Schlecht

Carol Brown

During his time in the USAF, circa 1951

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Carol Brown

In Panama circa 1951

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Carol Brown

Charles with sister, Annabel

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Carol Brown

Official US Air Force Portrait

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Carol Brown

High School Graduation Photo (we think!)

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Carol Brown

Charles getting a horsey ride from his dad, Lyman Hodson... a tradition he carried on with his own children!

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Carol Brown

2nd Grade

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Carol Brown

2019

90 Memories of Dad for his 90th Birthday – December 6, 2019

Thank you for being a man of integrity, raising us with the knowledge of God, and loving us unconditionally. We are truly blessed to have you as a father and grandfather. Happy 90th Birthday!

With Love,
Carol, Lance, Nathan, Megan, Jeff, Diana, Joel, Hannah, Abby, Jonathan

“The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them.”
Proverbs 20:7 (NLT)

1. Dad’s Donald Duck Impersonation. ~Jeff

2. Wooden Toys:

• Dad building toys out of wood for our Fisher Price Little People. ~Jeff & Carol
• One time, Dad built a wooden toy for each of the kids in our family. Mine was an airplane painted bright red. I used to love that airplane because Dad made it. ~Diana

3. Dad sitting on the shore watching me surf. ~Jeff

4. Dad BBQing the traditional 4th of July London Broil. ~Jeff

5. Climbing the tree (Dad = the tree). ~Jeff

6. Dad doing his daily exercises every morning. ~Jeff

7. Dad building the giant train/game board. ~Jeff

8. Using the Apple IIe for Christmas card lists, even into the 2000s. ~Jeff

9. Helping dad bleed the brakes on the cars. ~Jeff

10. The moustache coffee cup dad used to drink out of. ~Jeff

11. Dad teaching me how to swing a golf club. ~Jeff

12. Golfing with dad at Lake San Marcos Executive course. ~Jeff

13. Reading Stories:

• Dad reading/making up bedtime stories complete with funny voices. ~Jeff
• Dad pre-recording stories on cassette tapes for us to listen to on road trips. ~Carol
• We used to love Dad’s bedtime stories. Whenever he read a story, he would say, “Ding!” at the end of each page just like the pre-recorded stories we loved. He also used to make up stories. One of our favorites was about a man who had all kinds of impossible mishaps, like walking out of the house and flying onto the roof. We used to beg, “Dad, tell us the story about the man!” ~Diana

14. Spending the week with Dad while Mom was at the family reunion. ~Jeff & Carol

15. The time mom had to take Dad to the emergency room after he crashed into the wall chasing Tigger around the backyard. ~Jeff

16. Dad hitting pop flies to me in the park & me losing one in the sun & catching the ball with my face. ~Jeff

17. Dad getting out the ladder & nailing up the pinwheel firework every year on the 4th of July. ~Jeff

18. Dad watching the Superbowl upstairs one Sunday afternoon. ~Jeff

19. Taking a sip of Dad’s Coors on 4th of July. ~Jeff

20. Dad destroying the entire family at Trivial Pursuit on vacation while camped in the RV at Laguna Seca. ~Jeff

21. Us thinking the border guard said “whoa” instead of “go” while crossing back into the US from Mexico. ~Jeff

22. The Cane:

• Dad’s cane & how we always wanted to play with it. ~Jeff
• When I was young, Dad sometimes used a cane because of knee problems. When I was very young, I used to think the cane was cool. It made him unique! ~Diana
• The time Dad’s cane got sold at the Mariners’ garage sale. ~Carol

23. Dad mowing the lawn with the push mower every weekend. ~Jeff

24. Dad building the rabbit hutch for Susie. ~Jeff

25. The holes dad drilled in the gate so the dog could look outside. ~Carol & Jeff

26. The tan windbreaker that Dad always wore. ~Jeff

27. Borrowing a pair of Dad’s swim trunks that were probably older than me. ~Jeff

28. Hearing stories of pranks Dad played in his rambunctious youth like the tic tacs on people’s windows. ~Jeff

29. The time Dad gave my friends & I a ride home from the bowling alley & Billy threw up all over Arthur’s driveway. My friends & I still remember the moment & talk about Dad’s sympathetic commentary, “Oh, that’s a terrible, terrible thing.” ~Jeff

30. Dad pulling us around the neighborhood in the little red wagon. ~Jeff

31. Fishing with Dad at Bass Lake & me setting the hook a little too vigorously. ~Jeff

32. Taking the rental boat out at Bass Lake & getting stranded on the far side of the lake. ~Jeff

33. Dad teaching us to play tennis. ~Jeff

34. Dad & I flying model rockets. ~Jeff

35. Pinewood Derby Cars:

• Dad’s Pinewood Derby creations, complete with paint and decals. ~Jeff
• Dad was a vital part of any Pinewood Derby car or school project involving building. He didn’t do it for us, but he definitely did some of the designing, overseeing, and fine details. I think he enjoyed it. ~Diana

36. Dad giving us rides up and down the street on the “trashcan dolly.” ~Carol

37. Dad rescuing me when I accidentally put the Falcon in neutral and rolled down the driveway when I was ~4 years old. ~Carol

38. Trips to Catalina in the summertime, adventures in the Thorntons’ motorhome, and taking the train to Kansas. ~Carol

39. I am still amazed that Dad succumbed to my pleas and bought the 1956 Buick Century. I LOVED that car, even though it had so many problems and Dad probably regretted having bought it! I have wonderful memories of Dad poring over mail order catalogs for parts and fixing it up. ~Carol

40. The red dance box that Dad built for me and spray painted with shoeprints on the top! I still have it! ~Carol

41. Saturdays were “work around the house days”. We could usually find Dad mowing the lawn, washing the cars or working on something in the garage. ~Diana

42. I remember Dad building all of the cabinets for our upstairs “game room”. I was very impressed with his carpentry skills. When people would visit the room for the first time I would say, “My dad built those cabinets!” Dad also made a huge train table for Jeff’s electric trains. ~Diana

43. Dad torturing the dog by blowing beer breath in his face. ~Carol

44. Dad egging the dog on to attack the footstool of the recliner by repeatedly launching it out at him. Sparky would go crazy and bite the footstool over and over! Eventually they had to have it recovered due to all the teeth marks! ~Carol

45. When we were growing up Dad was usually calm, even when he was angry. I don’t remember him yelling at us, but when we would do something foolish he would say, “You kids just weren’t thinking.” Now that I have kids, I’m often tempted to say the same thing! ~Diana

46. I rarely saw Dad lose his temper, but one time we were in a parking lot and someone blocked our way going the opposite direction. Dad rolled down the window and kept shouting, “Back it up, buddy! I was here first!” For some reason we kids thought this was hilarious. I’m sure our barely-smothered giggling from the back seat did not help the situation. ~Diana

47. When I felt afraid of the dark or had trouble going to sleep, Dad used to lie on the floor of my room to keep me company. Sometimes he would fall asleep before I did! ~Diana

48. Before Carol, Jeff and I got our driver’s licenses, Dad made sure to teach us how to fill the car with gas, check the oil and change a tire. ~Diana

49. In the days before personal computers, Dad used to bring home used punch cards from the giant computers at work. I don’t remember exactly what we did with them, but we had great fun playing with them. ~Diana

50. I have always been amused by some of Dad’s food choices, like wheat germ on his cereal or beer/soda poured over a bowl of ice cream. ~Carol

51. Dad used to take cod liver oil (back in the days before gelcaps). For some reason I liked it and used to ask if I could have a spoonful too. ~Diana

52. Dad helped pick out my first car when I was in university: a charcoal gray Toyota Camry. ~Diana

53. After I learned to drive, before I went anywhere new Dad would sit down with me and show me the directions on a map. He always wanted to make sure that I would be safe and confident of where I was going. ~Diana

54. When I would come home for visits during university, Dad would always wash my car and fill it up with gas. When I read the book Five Love Languages, I quickly realized that Dad’s love language is “acts of service.” He knew that I was grown up and could do those things myself, but he did them to show his love. ~Diana

55. Dad used to have an old green Maverick with black vinyl seats that we bought from the Noacks. When we would go out on errands with him during the summer, our legs would stick to the seats and we had to be careful not to get burned by the seatbelts. ~Diana

56. Dad was very proud of our dichondra front lawn. We were not supposed to walk on it because he didn’t want us to crush the leaves. But every so often we were allowed to run through the sprinklers on the front lawn. What a special treat! ~Diana

57. We used to love using Dad’s tools in the garage. On weekends he would let us sit in the garage and build small things from scraps of wood. ~Diana

58. Dad used to make lots of business trips to Lancaster or Palmdale for wind tunnel tests. I used to picture a giant tunnel with a full-sized airplane in it, with Dad watching through a window in the side. I think the real thing was quite different! ~Diana

59. One of my favorite family photos is of Dad reading to Hannah and Abby when they were very young. I think it was taken when Dad and Mom came to visit us in Virginia after Jonathan was born. ~Diana

60. Another favorite photo is from Christmas at our house in London, right after Abby was born. Dad is wearing a paper crown from a Christmas cracker and doesn’t look at all embarrassed about it. ~Diana

61. Dad and I used to go to Indian Princesses, a father-daughter club at the YMCA (which, incidentally, would probably be considered politically incorrect today!). I have fond memories of the weekly meetings and occasional weekend camps with Dad. I’m pretty sure Dad didn’t enjoy sleeping on the ground or in a bunk bed, but he never complained! ~Diana

62. Poor Dad had to endure a lot of my tears and protestations whenever I needed help with math. As an engineer, he always seemed to know a shortcut that I was sure wouldn’t be accepted by the teacher. ~Diana

63. Dad used to snore. Loudly. But somehow it was always comforting to hear him snoring in the night, because I knew that he and Mom were there, and I wasn’t alone. ~Diana

64. Some of my favorite childhood memories are from family vacations. I remember that when I was small, Dad used to float in the pool and let me ride on his back. ~Diana

65. Horsey Rides:

• Our cousins on Mom’s side told us that when they first met Dad, they gave him an “uncle test” by making him give them all piggy back/horsey rides. ~Diana
• Dad giving us horsey rides and motorcycle rides, complete with sound effects. ~ Carol

66. I remember going to the Usher/Hodson family reunion in San Clemente: bringing some games that we had made, helping set up, and meeting lots of cousins-x-times removed. ~Jonathan

67. Last summer the fun family event was riding up and down the stairs on the stair lift that Dad had installed. I hope that Dad has gotten to take a ride too! ~Diana

68. Dad grew up to be an upstanding citizen, but it sounds like when he was a kid, he enjoyed his share of mischief. We used to love hearing him talk about the pranks he would play as a kid, like playing “tic tac” on people’s windows or scaring his little sister. ~Diana

69. When I was in high school, I used to enjoy going to Trader Joe’s with Dad and picking out tasty treats for the family. Trader Joe’s is still on our “must visit” list whenever we come back to the USA! ~Diana

70. Dad stopping at the health club to go swimming on his way home from work ~Carol

71. I loved making the traditional homemade ice cream on 4th of July with the manual hand-crank ice cream machine. It got so hard to turn at the end that we would have to sit on it to keep the inside part from spinning around! ~Carol

72. Dad’s neatly labeled and organized collection of VCR tapes and magazine racks. ~Carol

73. Getting snowed in at the Kinney’s cabin in Big Bear. ~Carol

74. I loved watching Dad work at his desk with his slide rule and calculator. In order to see, I stood on top of an upside down metal wastebasket. One time, I was apparently so enthralled that I didn’t want to leave to take a bathroom break. I had an accident and didn’t tell Dad. Years later, the bottom of the wastebasket had a rust spot to show for it! ~Carol

75. Whenever we took a road trip or family vacation, Dad always had all the details planned out, down to the hotels, points of interest, and even some restaurants. I have vivid memories of Mom & Dad flipping through the AAA TripTik along the way. ~Carol

76. One time when we were young teenagers, Diana threw a tennis ball at Jeff and it hit him in an unfortunate spot. I said, “Careful, Diana, he won’t be able to have children!” Dad quickly retorted, “Yes he will, but they’ll just have ‘Spalding’ stamped on their foreheads!” ~Carol

77. When Dad got his first Tesla ride from Cousin Mike, his response was, “I’m not sure I’d want a car that’s smarter than I am!” ~Carol

78. Over the course of his career, Dad worked on some classified projects. I was really impressed that he had such an important job and was able to keep things a secret! ~Carol

79. Because of his love for aviation, Dad instilled in me a fascination about flight and all things NASA. I remember watching the movie “The Right Stuff” with him and him telling me about his experiences and personal memories of those events. I was amazed when he told me he used to carpool to one of his Purdue classes with Roger Chaffee! ~Carol

80. Lance remembers one Christmas early on in our marriage... When he opened a gift that turned out to be a light-up screwdriver, he quipped, “Thanks, Chuck! Now I can screw in the dark!” After he realized his faux pas, he was thoroughly embarrassed to have said that to his father-in-law! But we all thought it was hilarious! ~Carol

81. Mom & Dad faithfully attending our many activities: plays, sporting events, music performances, etc., and then doing the same for their grandkids! ~Carol

82. Dad talking about all the fun he & Mom had on their many international trips. ~Carol

83. Dad rubbing my back, giving me leg massages, and guiding me through relaxation techniques to help me fall asleep when I was little. ~Carol

84. Going to church as a family and having regular Advent devotionals at Christmas. ~Carol

85. Although he did not coin this phrase, Dad embodies the motto: Use it up, wear it out, make it do, do without. This is why he still has his Apple IIe computer, his vintage stationary bicycle, and the rocking chair that pre-dates his marriage! It’s probably also why he was such a good provider and is so financially stable. ~Carol

86. Dad filmed a lot of our childhood on Super 8 film… We loved when he set up the projector and treated us to movie nights in the living room! ~Diana & Carol

87. I recently enjoyed talking to Grandpa about his engineering career and the time he was offered work at Area 51. ~Nathan

88. I remember looking through old yearbooks with Grandpa and talking about his college classmates. ~Jonathan

89. I remember being very impressed by Chuck’s plan for only having to pay for one child in college at a time. He paid for the first two years, then gave them the balance of their college money and told them to “handle it” from there. Then he would start paying for the next child. ~Lance

90. I always liked as kids when Grandpa was sitting in his green rocking chair and he would tell virtually any story or when he would let Nathan and I spin each other around in the rocking chair. ~Megan

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