Charles (Charlie) T. Chatterton, age 89, of Bethpage, New York, died on January 2, 2024, 6 days short of his 90th birthday. He was born at his family’s apartment on January 8, 1934, on Manhattan’s west side not far from the old Madison Square Garden and Central Park where he played army as a child. He was the fourth of seven children of George and Margaret (Farrell) Chatterton. Charlie attended the local parochial school, Sacred Heart, and then graduated from Power Memorial High School. Charlie started a long career at Equitable Life Insurance Company (30+ years) at the age of 17. This career was briefly interrupted when he was drafted into the US Army in the mid 1950s during peacetime. In 1958, he received an honorable discharge at the rank of corporal after the death of his father. It was with a smile that he referred to his work in the Army as a “Remington Raider” (clerical and administrative). Then at the Equitable, he met the love of his life, Margaret (Ree, Margie, Irish) Blaikie; they married in 1962 and celebrated 61 years of marriage in March 2023. Charlie was predeceased by his parents (George and Margaret) and his three older siblings, Edward Chatterton and his wife Kay, Eileen Henry and her husband Ray, and George (Sharkey) Chatterton. Charlie is survived by his younger sisters Mary Kemerson (predeceased by husband Al), Marilyn Garger and husband Steve, and younger brother, Frank Chatterton (predeceased by wife Jean). In addition to his wife, he leaves his six children, Mary, Charlie, Katie, Patty, Eileen, and Anne, and their families including 11 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Charlie stressed the importance and value of hard work, common sense, respect for others, family, service, and faith to his children, and these were the pillars that he built his life upon and encouraged his children to do the same. He was always willing to help coach and work behind the scenes for his children’s activities with Our Lady of Mercy’s CYO programs. Charlie enjoyed watching his kids participate in their different activities, whether a sporting event, dance recital, school concert, or Hicksville’s Memorial Day parade (Charlie resided in Hicksville from 1964 – 2000). His main request of all of his children was to do their best, and if we asked for feedback, he would be happy to give it in a constructive manner. He was sure to take home movies of many events, which he learned from his own father, George, who took many movies during Charlie’s childhood (much of it with the same movie camera – before the age of the camcorder) to capture the memories. Charlie enjoyed watching most sports with hockey (Islanders) and baseball (Mets) possibly being his favorites and was not afraid to give feedback to the TV - or anyone in the same room - on his thoughts of the game and the players’ efforts. His favorite sport to participate in was bowling, which he did well into his retirement until he was physically unable. His grandchildren knew that he was not a big fan of using bumpers on the bowling lanes, but if you knew Charlie/Dad/Grandpa well, he loved to smile, tease, and joke with people and give you a hard time in a good-natured way. If he teased or joked with you, you knew he cared about you, and if you were new to the family, you were now part of the family.

Charlie was a devout Roman Catholic and did his best to follow the teachings of the church; in fact, perhaps his greatest gift to his family and friends was the love and caring he attempted to demonstrate each day. As a young father, he served as a church usher, and later, as a eucharistic minister delivering communion at the local hospital and to anyone unable to attend mass. With the increased impact of dementia and the reoccurrence of spindle cell cancer that made the last years and months very challenging for all involved, the family would like to thank his doctors, healthcare providers, and aides for their assistance and support over the years along with the staff members at Brookville Home Care, Good Shepherd Hospice, and The Bristal who provided compassionate care during the last days of his life. The family offers a sincere thank you to all of Charlie’s friends and family members who provided their support, a listening ear, left a thoughtful text or voicemail, and their prayers during his final months, and we send a special thank you to his cousin, Charles Chatterton (imagine the two of them in the same room if they wanted to cause some mischief!), for his special care, companionship, and willingness to provide transportation to the many doctor appointments over the last few years.

The family suggests considering a memorial donation to one of the following groups or an activity (please see below) to honor Charlie’s life: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Donate to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center | MSK Giving (mskcc.org) St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital https://www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude.html Alzheimer’s Association Alzheimer's Association | Donate to Fight Alzheimer's Disease Or possible activities: Go bowling with family and friends and be sure to smile and laugh and appreciate the people you are with. Donate your time to an organization that is important to you and makes a positive difference in people’s lives. Finally, as Charlie would typically end many conversations and letters to his children (back when people wrote letters), we would like to extend his “May God bless you always” to all of you and your loved ones.