Obituary for Charles T. Warren Jr.
Charles Thomas Warren Jr., 88, of Medfield, passed away on May 28th at Medway Country Manor. He was born on February 6, 1931 in Durham, North Carolina to Charlie and Annie Mae Warren. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Margaret Ward Warren of Medfield, sons Chuck Warren of Ashland and Chris Warren(Mia) of Medway, daughter Kim (Jim) Wersal of Montrose, Colorado, and grandchildren Jasmine (John) Duff of Barrington, NH, Andrew Warren, and Rachael Warren of Derry, NH; and nephews Robert Warren (Holly) of Woodstock, NY and Britt Warren of Asheville, NC. He is preceded in death by his parents, Charlie and Annie Mae Warren, brother Burke Warren, and daughter Robin Warren.
Tom was very proud of his roots in North Carolina, where his family had lived for generations. He always considered himself a Tarheel, no matter where he lived. Tommy attended grades K-12 in Durham. After graduating from High School, he joined the Airforce. As a boy, Tom ran most places, and he was tall and thin, so he did very well in basic training. After a year in the Air Force, he transferred to the U.S. Army where he attended Officer Candidate School. The Air Force was not happy to lose a trained soldier, but Tom went on to become a 1st Lieutenant in the Army, where he helped train paratroopers. After his military service, Tom attended Duke University where he achieved a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master’s in Teaching.
While serving in the military, Tom first met Margaret Ward, also of Durham. She always recalls to her family how handsome he looked in his uniform, and how good his manners were, though her mother--while also impressed-- exclaimed: “But doesn’t he have the skinniest old legs!” Tommy and Margaret (or Sweetpea, as he called her) married on Sept. 1, 1956-- a marriage that lasted 62 years.
Tom and Margaret found it difficult to raise a family on a teacher’s salary, so in 1959 took a job in sales for the Kendall Company, which required him to travel extensively across the Carolinas and Georgia. He always said that he started out selling jockstraps and stretch socks, and worked his way up to a corporate position as Sales Training Manager. Tom spent his 28 year career with Kendall, moving the family from North Carolina, to South Carolina, Georgia, New Jersey, and finally Medfield where the family settled in 1972. He retired in 1987.
Tom was a very intelligent, well-read man with a quick, irreverent sense of humor. He was known to pen a limerick or other poem to commemorate various occasions--typically a bit off-color, but always funny. He related best to others through his storytelling. Those stories tended to become embellished with each telling. As small children, his kids listened to his ghost stories with delighted horror, then lay in their beds trembling with anticipation, wondering if he had crept back into the room and was lying in wait to reach up from under the bed to grab their legs in the dark. He loved fishing, and some of his favorite stories were of fishing trips he took to the mountains of north Georgia; he was an avid reader from the time he was a small child; he loved the North Carolina beach; and he loved his family.
He suffered from COPD for many years, and the family found out in recent weeks that his heart was failing. He was blessed to be able to remain living at home until a month before his death,
Tom was very proud of his roots in North Carolina, where his family had lived for generations. He always considered himself a Tarheel, no matter where he lived. Tommy attended grades K-12 in Durham. After graduating from High School, he joined the Airforce. As a boy, Tom ran most places, and he was tall and thin, so he did very well in basic training. After a year in the Air Force, he transferred to the U.S. Army where he attended Officer Candidate School. The Air Force was not happy to lose a trained soldier, but Tom went on to become a 1st Lieutenant in the Army, where he helped train paratroopers. After his military service, Tom attended Duke University where he achieved a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master’s in Teaching.
While serving in the military, Tom first met Margaret Ward, also of Durham. She always recalls to her family how handsome he looked in his uniform, and how good his manners were, though her mother--while also impressed-- exclaimed: “But doesn’t he have the skinniest old legs!” Tommy and Margaret (or Sweetpea, as he called her) married on Sept. 1, 1956-- a marriage that lasted 62 years.
Tom and Margaret found it difficult to raise a family on a teacher’s salary, so in 1959 took a job in sales for the Kendall Company, which required him to travel extensively across the Carolinas and Georgia. He always said that he started out selling jockstraps and stretch socks, and worked his way up to a corporate position as Sales Training Manager. Tom spent his 28 year career with Kendall, moving the family from North Carolina, to South Carolina, Georgia, New Jersey, and finally Medfield where the family settled in 1972. He retired in 1987.
Tom was a very intelligent, well-read man with a quick, irreverent sense of humor. He was known to pen a limerick or other poem to commemorate various occasions--typically a bit off-color, but always funny. He related best to others through his storytelling. Those stories tended to become embellished with each telling. As small children, his kids listened to his ghost stories with delighted horror, then lay in their beds trembling with anticipation, wondering if he had crept back into the room and was lying in wait to reach up from under the bed to grab their legs in the dark. He loved fishing, and some of his favorite stories were of fishing trips he took to the mountains of north Georgia; he was an avid reader from the time he was a small child; he loved the North Carolina beach; and he loved his family.
He suffered from COPD for many years, and the family found out in recent weeks that his heart was failing. He was blessed to be able to remain living at home until a month before his death,