Charles Greene

Charles Earl Green was born in Malvern, Arkansas in 1939 to the union of Beatrice & Junius Green. Charles was raised by his father Junius & Aunt (Aunt Meadell). Charles was always very independent, strong willed and stubborn since childhood. He never allowed life’s difficulties to deter him or keep him from doing anything he set his mind to.

They relocated to Bakersfield California where he, his eldest sister Martha, and youngest brother Curtis all attended school at Bakersfield high school. At the age of 14, Charles worked his very first job working for his neighbor Mr. Gaston cutting lawns. This gave him pride, and a great work ethic that would last him all the way until his mid senior citizen days.

Charles Earl Green, would soon gain the name of “Chuck the Duck” (the great big ol’ handsome tree of love), as he was a ladies man. Chuck had seven children. He worked many jobs, all across the country just like his father Junius. He worked in Arkansas, Bakersfield, Omaha, and finally His father got him a job working with him here in Portland Oregon in the meat packing warehouses. He loved telling his grandkids all about his jobs and work experience. Especially his jobs working as a butcher, to working in the Trojan plant, and his many years working for a union doing construction. He’d love to tell the stories of how he helped build many of the sky scrapers in downtown Portland, and how he helped build the Lloyd & Clackamas Town Center Malls.

Chuck LOVED his family. Especially his big sister Martha (whom he affectionately called Sam), his children, all of his siblings, his nieces and nephews (who all called him “Uncle Chuck”) and mostly ALL of all his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He smile from ear to ear every time he’d see them. Made each grandchild and great grandchild feel like they were his favorite.

He loved peach cobbler, doing crossword puzzles, playing dominos, barbecuing on his custom homemade grill, watching the news, doing the food bank at his residence, and sitting in the front of his building people watching and laughing with his neighbors.

He was a Deacon and faithful member of his church for the last 12 years, and hardly ever missed a Sunday. His favorite part of attending the church was when his Grandson Alonzo would come and preach for them. He’d just smile and secretly wipe tears from his eyes as he’d preach, especially when the last time he preached the sermon was about Chuck’s role in his life as a father. And that Chuck was the reason that he was the man, husband, and father that he is today.

Due to unfortunate circumstances, Charles did not know his birthday. So Charles bring the independent person he was, he chose his own birthday. He selected January 16th as his birthday. He said since he got to choose, he picked the day after a someone he loved and admired, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He added an “e” to his last name because his brother Alex told him that without the e on the end it makes us nothing more than a thing or a color. He said I’m a person and am more than a color. So like his brother he added the “e” on the end of his name.

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