Charlie Duncan
Susie Duncan (Charlie’s wife) left the following message on March 19th (2022) to Lion Ava: “ I regret to tell you that Charlie passed last night at midnight. It’s a good thing. It’s a blessing and he was peaceful. He was on morphine and he was, when I was over there… he was breathing nicely and so he went in a good way that’s for the best.”
Hi, my name is Charles Duncan, I was born in Seattle Washington on September 22, 1934. At age 3 we moved to California. I was raised in Santa Rosa, CA, then we moved to San Francisco CA, living at 25th and Sea Cliff Dr. I went to Cabrillo School, Presidio Jr. High, and Washington High School. I participated in all sports, field and track, football, baseball, and all water sports. I was president of the Eagle Society at Washington High, and had a grade point average of 3.97.
Upon graduation, I entered the U.S. Army planning to go to West Point but missed the entry date by 2 days, I was transferred to the 82nd Airborne until I could re-enter West Point. On the first day of jumping out of the tower, my static line broke and I was in the hospital with a broken nose, broken ankle, and at that time I asked to be transferred out and they sent me to Camp Chaffee Arkansas for Artillery Training. After basic training, I went to OCS, then to Korea. I was in Korea for 1 week and then I was transferred to the 8th Field Artillery, where I met General Edwin Anderson Walker, and he asked me if I would be his Officer in Charge of the office, and I said yes, and in 2 weeks we were on our way to Hawaii for the rest of my tour. I was there for 3 years, and the General was assigned to Little Rock, Ark. And I retired from the Army. General Walker was retired by President Kennedy because of the fight between the General and politicians over the black population of that time, he was from Texas and thought the Black People should ride in the back of the bus, he even argues with Kennedy and Martin Luther King.
After Korea and Hawaii, I moved in with my parents in Redding, and worked for the USFS, as an Engineer since I had a License, for road construction and surveying during the summer, and did all the drawings and design of all the construction or roads, bridges, etc. while going to Shasta College. After I graduated, I married Susan Schroeder and we went to College of the Pacific in Stockton, I had an Engineering degree, but didn’t like working for the USFS, so I went in to Pharmacy School. That was a long 5 years of schooling that I did in 4 years, and when I graduated I started work at Pay Less Drug on Market Street in Redding in June of 62.
My daughter like most girls, wanted a horse, so I bought her one, a beautiful quarter horse named Angel, and she couldn’t ride by herself, at 8, so I bought a black quarter horse, called Dr. Joe. This was the start of me joining the Shasta County Sheriff’s Posse, and hitting all of the Parades and Rodeo’s in the area for the next 5 years.
At this time Ken Knighten invited me to a new club starting in Redding called the Redding Breakfast Lions. On going to my 3rd meeting President Jerry Asher needed a Tail Twister and asked me if I would help him out until he got a new one. I started and collected so much money Jerry asked me to keep the job. That was 1965 I think, and had the job for 42 years, except when I was President, Treasurer, Secretary and visitation chairman. Jerry Asher also had a Brand NEW Dodge Charger and when I was visitation chairman we visited Burney Lions, and made the trip in 34 minutes in Jerry’s Charger. For you that have visited the Burney Lions Club, in the front entrance they have a beautiful glass enclosed cabinet that had glass doors, and it was always locked so no one could steal any of their trophies and other goodies. Well owning a Pharmacy, the key is made so anyone knowing about glass cabinets, they all use the same key. That week we got “only 6 trophies.” They also had a 6 foot Lion on a platform above the presidents seat, while Jerry and Ken Knighten were lighting fire crackers out front and yelling shooting, 3 of us were taking the lion off the platform and putting in Asher’s trunk. We made it home and they didn’t know it was gone for a week. We won the visitation award for the year, visiting Mt Shasta, Burney, Anderson, Cottonwood, Red Bluff, Chico and Corning Lions Clubs.
I met Earl Bydalek, a member of the Redding Breakfast Lions, who was a ski patrol member of the original Mt. Shasta Ski Area. I skied a lot with him and our families all enjoyed going to Mt. Shasta to ski every weekend. Earl built a house there and we stayed overnight with his family so we could ski early and miss the 120 mile round trip.
Later on in the year I met George and Mickey Theobald, and they asked me if I could teach skiing and train kids how to ski, because he was starting the Freestyle Ski Program in Tahoe. I agreed and after a year we had the best Far West Ski Team in the country, and our first trip was to Maine for the Championship. Pan Am Airlines said that if you pay for yourself you could take your kids free. So 5 adults bought tickets, and 26 of our ski team kids got free transportation from San Francisco to Bangor Maine. Since I was head judge for the U.S. Free Style Ski Team, I got free room and board. We won the meet and most of our team bought lobsters to take home, but mostly to race in the isles of the 747 trip home. the crew of the plane thought it was OK but not to let them get away from each of the team. After about 15 minutes we had people on the plane betting on who’s lobster would win. The Colorado ski team was also on the trip home and they invited us to their Championship in Colorado for the next years Championship. I did this for 15 years, and was worn out when I quit.
About this time I sold Cottonwood Drug, and went to work for Elmore Pharmacy in Red Bluff for Lyman Ulrich, who was a class mate at College of the Pacific, and also because he had back problems and couldn’t work for a while. When he was well, I went to work for Longs Drug in Redding and worked there for 12 years as their compounding Pharmacist. I compounded drugs for Doctors from Washington, Oregon and Texas, mostly for Cancer patients, and women who couldn’t get pregnant. This was about 1997, and I was working a 48 hour week, which included Saturdays and Sunday.
While working for Longs Drug, I met a customer Henry “Hank” Moore, who was the Flotilla Commander for the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary from Redding. Hank was a talker and conned me into teaching 1st Aid for his members and as a class for Civilians. I joined the Auxiliary and within a year, I was Flotilla Commander, and in-charge of an area of the Coast Guard from Eureka North to the Oregon Border, South to Williams and East to the Nevada Border. I taught classes not only in 1st Aid, but Operations, Vessel Examiner, Marine Dealer Visitations, Diversity, and I passed the Class in Navigation so I became a Crew and 6 months later a Coxswain. At this time I decided to build my own boat at the cost of $32,000.00. I took a trip to White City Oregon and met Mike Boulton, who made the best Jet Boats in the Western States. I designed the boat which was 24 feet long, had a 454 engine, had a 30 inch swim deck with a railing so you could rescue, fish off of, and never get real wet. The boat was blue, with leather seats, custom top, 2 marine radios, depth finder, GPS Light bar, Complete 1st Aid back pack, auto life jackets for me and crew of 4, Search light, Compass, back board, and would run in 5 inches of water. I used the boat for 16 years, and sold it for same price I paid for it, and in those 16 years, I saved 56 people from 3 years old to 97 from drowning. I also went up in the ranks from Flotilla Commander to Division Commander for Division 3 which was in the Sacramento Area. So after 5 years I was in-charge of Northern California, Sacramento to Oregon Boarder.
Every year our Flotilla has a 5 day training program at Antlers Resort, the last week of April, and after 17 years, we are the only Flotilla that has a training program that teaches new recruits or 3 year re-qualification students the art of Navigation, and how to qualify for crew or Coxswain status and I sell 3X5 cards per packet, with all the answers to the questions asked by our Qualification Examiners in the Coast Guard Auxiliary. This is the only Flotilla in the United States that has this program, and I have an award for this from the United States Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety, Washington DC from 2002. I also have 76 awards from the USCG in Alameda.
In the last 10 years I worked for RiteAid, as a relief Pharmacist, and I travel to the Coast, Eureka and Crescent City, to Alturas, Burney, Adin, and all the great little towns in Northern California, and after 55 years I will retire in November 30, 2016.
Charlie
Published August, 2016
From the Record Searchlight: Charlie Duncan
