On June 23, 2021, Charles Leslie Mooney completed this leg of his journey, and put out his thumb to hitch a ride to whatever lies ahead. He left us all too soon, dying unexpectedly, asleep in his favorite chair, in the home he built and shared for 46 years with his beloved wife Donna Jean Backus. My parents met over 53 years ago in a revolving door on Donna’s 21st birthday, and they’ve been going around together ever since.

Born November 28, 1943, in Cumberland, Maryland, to Michael Alyosuis and Violet Leona Mooney. Charles and his siblings, Amy and Larry, were raised by their Aunt Nola and Uncle George Zimmerla after their mother’s untimely death. Following a tumultuous childhood, Charles enlisted in the Air Force, at the tender age of 17. A year of specialist electronics training gave him the opportunity to serve in Fukuoka, Japan. He fondly recalled this time with tales of racing motorcycles, living in a castle with a moat, all-night drinking contests, and I assume some occasional work on the Thunderchief F-105D.

Upon completing his service, Charles landed a job at Elmat, in Mountain View, California, and quite unintentionally found himself growing some of the silicon crystals that would drive the explosion of the semiconductor revolution (in the yet-to-be-named Silicon Valley). Despite these auspicious beginnings, he (proudly) never quite managed to successfully operate a single function on his iPhone.

After learning about the GI Bill, Charles embarked upon a decade-long college career, which served as the foundation for his lifelong passion for learning. At Foothill Junior College, he sang in their nationally acclaimed choir, and traveled to Hawaii to perform at the Governor’s Mansion. Tired of the smog and traffic that accompanied an expanding Bay Area, Charles and Donna escaped to the North, eventually settling in Trinidad (a quaint drinking village with a fishing problem).

Charles dabbled in various careers: logging truck driver (proud trucker and Teamster for life), carpenter, redwood tree farmer, architect (particularly fond of hyperbolic paraboloid roofs), and horticulturist. But his true calling turned out to be the oldest of professions: not prostitution, but that of proud father, teacher, and best friend to his beloved son, Brian Patrick Backus-Mooney.

From explaining the inherent contradictions of Capitalism, to an always unique birthday or Christmas gift (uni- cycle, hurling stick, tree-climbing gear), my dad always kept things interesting. Without the use of any organized type of religion, he lived and shared a deep sense of humanism, morality, and spirituality. Charles despised disingenuity, greed, and hypocrisy. His material possessions were few, including half a dozen pool cues, a few pocket knives, and an uncountable number of books.We take great solace that his beloved grandchildren, Dy- lan Charles (the “Fire Marshall”), and Liana Marie (his “Dulce Corazon”) saw him frequently and knew him well, and will carry his love and memory with them forever (“How long is forever? Duh, forever!”). Grandpa Charly never ended a visit without expressing his gratitude for Dylan and Liana making his golden years so golden, and thanking his beloved daughter-in-law Christina for “giving him this family to love.”

Those who went before: parents, Michael and Violet, brother Larry, brothers Gary and Danny. The rest of us mortal souls charged with carrying on his legacy: wife, Donna Backus, son, Brian Patrick (Christina) and their children, Dylan Charles and Liana Marie, sister, Amy (Richard) Ashbury, sister, Pamela (Gary) Shanholtz, brother, Dale (Belinda) Mooney, and numerous nieces and nephews and all of their beautiful progeny. And of course, to all of his friends: you know who you are, so find a bottle, raise a glass, even balance one on your (surgically flattened) head if you’re up for it…here’s to living your true life, finding the things that bring you joy, and exuding love and peace out into the world.

If you are looking for something to do in Chuck’s honor, drop a five or a twenty into a homeless person’s hand, support your local public television station, get vaccinated, and be kind. Celebration of Life/Wake/Raging Party planned for around summer solstice, 2022, exact time and location TBD.

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