Charles Little

Charles Stratton Little, age 89, died at Oak Creek Terrace Care Facility on April 17, 2015 after an extended illness.

Born November 19, 1925, in Vicco, Kentucky to Johnny and Lucy Mae Little, he attended Berea High School in Berea, Kentucky until age 18. He enlisted in the United States Navy in January of 1944. He received electrical training at the Great Lakes Naval Center and Camp Shoemaker in San Francisco. He was assigned to the USS Miami, where he served his country from August 1944 until May 1946. The USS Miami was active in the Asiatic Pacific area and in the liberation of the Philippines.

After his discharge, Charles finished high school at Berea. He was tutored in English by Hazel Graff, who joyfully became his wife two years after they met. Charles received his B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Kentucky in 1950. A lifelong learner and Bible scholar, Charles earned his MBA degree from the University of Dayton in 1988, and also studied Hebrew for fun.

Charles and Hazel lived in Columbus, Ohio, where he worked for Western Electric for 35 years. While in Columbus, they raised four children.
During his life, Charles served the Lord as a Sunday School teacher, Elder, Deacon, and Awana Assistant at Fairmoor Presbyterian Church and Walnut Heights Baptist Church in Columbus and Patterson Park Church in Beavercreek.

After his retirement, Charles devoted much of his spare time to repairing tape recorders for the Recorded Books for the Blind Program. He also volunteered as a tutor at the Stowe Center in Columbus, and often served as a judge for Columbus Area school science fairs. He was an active member of Pioneers and IEEE.

Survivors include his wife of 67 years and one day, Hazel; daughters Flo (Dave) Rankin of North Canton, Ohio; Debby Richardson of Wallingford, Pennsylvania, Sharon (Pete) Male of Findlay, Ohio, and son Dave (Sharon) Little of Middleton, Wisconsin. Charles had seven grandsons: Andy, Scott, Stephen, Anthony, Chad, Chris, and Paul; one granddaughter, Rachel, and three great grandchildren: Samantha, Hadley, and Heath, all of whom he adored and was in turn, adored by them.

Charles was preceded in death by his parents, Johnny and Lucy Mae; brothers Tom and Glenn, and his loving foster parents, Elizabeth and Malcolm Holiday.

Services will be held at Patterson Park Church, 3655 E. Patterson Road, Beavercreek, Ohio, 45430, on Monday, April 20, 2015 at 2:30 pm. Visitation will take place at the church prior to the service from 1:00 - 2:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Alzheimer's Disease Research, 22512 Gateway Center Dr., PO Box 1950, Clarksburg, Maryland, 20871-1950, or to Vitas Hospice Care, 3055 Kettering Blvd., Suite 400, Dayton, Ohio, 45439.