Charles G Tierney

Charles George Tierney, age 90, took flight on Memorial Day - Monday, May 30, 2022 in Fresno, CA. Charles was born September 26, 1931 in Sodus, New York to Gladys Mills Tierney and George E. Tierney. All who knew and loved him called him Chuck or Charlie.

The youngest of 5, Charlie was predeceased by father George Edward, mother Gladys Viola, sisters Jean T. Baker, Margaret T. Resue and Doris T. Duel, and his wife DeEtta Dawn Tierney. Survived by brother James E. Tierney, daughter Elizabeth (James) Corbitt, granddaughter Sarah (Jason) Deavitt, and many cousins, nieces, nephews and dear friends.

The Tierneys lived in Wolcott, Rochester and Sodus, NY. After the death of his father, the family moved to Rochester, NY where Charlie attended public school. He enjoyed summers at his grandfather’s farm on Cherry Lane in Sodus, NY where he spent happy times with his siblings and 6 Mills’ cousins.

Charlie was awarded a scholarship to attend the University of Rochester. His major was theater, which would come to be a lifelong subject of passion, admiration and study along with classical music. His nieces and nephews called the domed library on campus “Uncle Chuck’s building.” He continued his love of books all of his life and had an enviable collection of classics, historical non-fiction, studies on Shakespeare, poetry, and 27 dictionaries and thesauruses. He truly was a lover of language and the written word.

In 1951 Charlie was called into service in the US Air Force. He was stationed at Sampson Air Force Base in Romulus, NY and in 1954 served as an Air Policeman for a year in S. Korea during the Korean war. During this time he met his life long friend, Tong Ho Ra, who visited Charlie in the US several times after the war.

After his service ended, Charlie moved to San Francisco where he continued to study theatre part-time at San Francisco State University while working at Leighton Stone Corporation as a salesman. He met Dawn (aka De) Mann at their workplace in 1959. Dawn commented on the classical music being played on the radio and that sparked their love affair. After a year of dating, Charlie went to Big Sur CA, where he worked on the lighting for the movie “Flight.” When he returned he asked Dawn to be his "bridie" and they were married on February 13, 1960. Along with De's daughter Elizabeth, they lived in San Francisco until they eventually bought a house in Woodacre, CA where Chuck and De lived for 35 years. Charlie could often be found in their gorgeous garden making compost, tending to flowers and vegetables, building something or tinkering with some broken tool or appliance. Throughout their 50 years of marriage, they traveled throughout the US, as well as to England, Scotland and France - making friends wherever they went. Charlie enthusiastically supported the classical arts from symphonies to ballet, and encouraged his granddaughter Sarah at her many dance recitals, choir concerts, and solo performances. He was generous to family and friends alike, a wise confidante, a master of poetry, and a tireless caregiver of Dawn until her death on March 7, 2010.

When Charlie was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2016, his granddaughter became his primary caregiver, and in 2018 he moved to live with Sarah and her partner Jason in Fresno, CA. As the dementia progressed Charlie remained sweet and curious. His incredible sense of humor never faltered, nor did his love of books, classical music, nature, and good food. Charlie was a proud and humble veteran, a wordsmith, a questioner of EVERYTHING, a source of wisdom, and a gentle spirit. He will be deeply missed.