Charles Ray Earnest, age 77, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, passed away on January 14, 2019.
He was born on June 22, 1941 to Grover Austin Earnest and Mary Joyce (Onstott) Earnest of Oklahoma City. He was the first of three children. Growing up in a military family meant that Charles attended multiple schools through the years. While attending Midwest City High School, Charles was a great athlete.
However, due to a new military assignment just before his Senior year, the family moved to Ankara, Turkey, where he graduated from high school.
On June 14, 1963, Charles was united in marriage to Dona Joy Crouse of Oklahoma City. In Octber 1965, Charles enlisted in the United States Army during the Vietnam war and served stateside as a Radio Teletype Operator until his honorable discharge in 1968. He and Dona resided in Colorado initially and then moved home to Oklahoma where Charles completed his education.
Charles and Dona were married for 25 years and raised their two children, Holly and Greg, in Oklahoma City. During this time, Charles worked in the areas of finance, accounting, and business. Charles earned two degrees from the University of Central Oklahoma–a business degree in May 1976 and a Master of Education in May 1993.
On February 26, 1993, Charles married Rebecca Ann Gillespie and gained another daughter, Carrie Gillespie. Three months later, Charles graduated with his master’s degree and received his teaching certificate and taught until his retirement in 2007. Both he and Rebecca thoroughly enjoyed their teaching careers. During this time, he taught at Ardmore High School and then Putnam City High School. His 14 years as a DECA sponsor and teacher, meant teaching all the things he loved–Marketing Management, Entrepreneurship, Fashion, and Sports Marketing.
Charles served in several officer positions for the Oklahoma Marketing Education Teachers Association. He inspired high school students to search for the things they loved and turn them into business ventures. Teaching was his gift and true love, but retirement allowed him and Rebecca to spend more time with their favorite people– their grandkids.
Charles enjoyed raising his kids, coaching, fishing, the outdoors, and anything that involved the kids. He loved all of his family deeply, but he absolutely lived for his grandkids and loved making memories with them.
Charles was always involved in his local church and gave of his time to numerous volunteer efforts such as Big Brothers, Love OKC, Feed the Hungry, Oklahoma Juvenile Foster Care Program, a deacon and head of Benevolence Ministry at River of Life Church, Oklahoma Literacy Program, Student Tutoring program, and many other benevolent organizations over the years.
Charles is survived by two sisters, Donna Lindley and Debbie Meyers, and her husband Brian; daughter, Holly Smith, and her husband Jeff of McPherson, Kansas, and son, Greg and wife, Michelle Earnest of Platte City, Missouri, and step-daughter, Carrie Wolf, and her husband Mike Wolf of Yukon, Oklahoma; six grandchildren, Lauren Earnest, Thomas, Emily, and Amber Smith, and Grace and Sophia Wolf, other family members, and many friends.
Memorial Service will be held February 2, 2019 at 10 a.m. at First Baptist Church of Piedmont, located at 15 Jackson Avenue NW, Piedmont, OK 73078.
The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Integris Hospice in OKC (405) 848-8884,5710 NW 130th St #100, OKC, OK 73142 or First Baptist Church of Piedmont (405) 373-2420, PO Box 235, Piedmont, OK 73078
