Charles Henry Thomasson

THOMASSON, Charles Henry, passed away on September 12, 2013. He was born to a large and close rural family in Hamptonville, NC on the 16th of February, 1917, the son of Mary Belle Cash and James A. Thomasson, and the fifth of twelve children. He was a loving husband to his wife of 71 years, Mary Jane Pittman, the proud father of three children, Bonnie (Ward Close), Paul (Kathy), and Mark (Karen), as well as seven grandchildren, Adam, Jennifer, David, Brian (Amanda), Rebecca, Emily, Andy, and three great-grandchildren, Ethan, Levi, and Evelyn. He is also survived by his sister, Martha Belle Reid, and four sisters-in-law, Anne, Marie, Jean, and Eva. After two years of junior college in North Carolina he hitch-hiked to Chattanooga, arriving with $6.10 in his pocket. He worked his way through UTC and was elected Bachelor of Ugliness (Outstanding Student). He married Mary Jane Pittman March 10, 1942 and immediately shipped out for a four year tour in Europe during WWII as a captain in the Eighth Air Force. He returned to Chattanooga and spent his entire career as an educator and guidance counselor in Chattanooga Schools. Charlie was instrumental in beginning the Head Start program, and he was a member of Kiwanis. He was an elder at the Central Church of Christ and later worshipped with the Clear Creek congregation. Charlie loved children of all ages and had a special gift for reaching and encouraging adolescents in the difficult transition to maturity. He was an avid gardener, played the banjo, and gave away hundreds of handmade gee haw whimmy diddles. Graveside services will be held on September 21st at 2pm at St. Paul's Methodist Church in Hamptonville, NC. In lieu of flowers please send contributions to Boyd Buchanan School scholarship fund, 4650 Buccaneer Trail, Chattanooga, TN 37411, www.bbschool.org. Cards or memorials may be sent to Mrs. Charles Thomasson, Maybelle Carter Retirement Center, 208 West Due West Ave., #101, Nashville, TN 37115, or post memories on www.gentryfuneralservice.com. "A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drovebut the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child."