Charles Stollenwerck Smith, aged 87, passed away on November 13, 2023, at the Birmingham VA Medical Center. Charles was preceded in death by his wife, Caroline Pauline Backer, his parents, Carol Castleman Smith and Edith Manson Stollenwerck; and his siblings, Anne Cobbs Weatherford and Carol Castleman Smith. Survivors include his daughters, Jennifer Backer Griffith (Scott) of Montpelier, VT and Elise Avery Smith (Randy) of Birmingham, AL; son, Charles Whelan Stollenwerck Smith (Alison) of Glenwood Springs, CO; and grandchildren, Benjamin Charles Raymond Griffith of New Orleans, LA; Samuel Bosworth Griffith of Austin, TX; Mason Maguire Smith and Avery Caroline Smith of Glenwood Springs, CO; sister, Alice Rutledge Ramsey, Chattanooga, TN; as well as many cousins, nieces and nephews.
Born in Montgomery, AL, in 1936, Charles graduated from Decatur High School in 1954. He received a B.S. in Math and a minor in French from the University of Alabama in 1958 where he was a member of the ROTC and Kappa Alpha fraternity. He received his commission to the U.S. Air Force in 1958 as a Second Lieutenant and earned a degree in Meteorology from St. Louis University in 1959. He began as a weather forecaster and weather officer. He soon completed special training as a paratrooper and employed those skills as the Officer in Command of the 1st Air Commando Wing, a special operations weather team that set up remote weather stations in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Later he continued his service as a Weather Commander and Military Airlift Command Inspector General. During his 22-year Air Force career, he was stationed in Greenland, Chad, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Germany as well as many locations in the United States.
While stationed in Frankfurt, Germany, Charles met and married Caroline in Bern, Switzerland in 1961, a marriage that lasted 58 years. Charles returned with his family to Alabama in 1980 and pursued math education as his second career path. He earned an M.S. from the University of Alabama and was an instructor at Marion Military Institute, Wilcox Central High School, and Southern Academy. Charles was an active citizen of Greensboro, Alabama, a dedicated Episcopalian, and a faithful fan of the Crimson Tide. He served on St. Paul’s Vestry as Senior Warden and Treasurer and sang in the choir for many years. He was on the board of the Hale Empowerment and Revitalization Organization (HERO) and participated in the establishment of the Hale County Animal Shelter.
Charles loved observing all things related to the sky: clouds, storms, birds, planets, and stars. He was an avid reader of mysteries, and non-fiction, and a great fan of James A. Michener. Charles loved to entertain with his wife, and they hosted many social gatherings throughout the seasons at their beloved family home, Contentment. Charles was happiest socializing. He loved sharing stories, telling jokes, and having a good meal. He was aptly nicknamed Col. Crossword in his later years, for always carrying a puzzle wherever he went. With deep gratitude, we celebrate his travels, adventures, empathy, knowledge, curiosity, and accomplishments.
Services will be held at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Greensboro, AL on a date yet to be determined. In place of flowers, donations can be made to Friends of Hale County Animals (P.O. Box 312, Greensboro, AL 35744) or Project Horseshoe Farm in Greensboro, AL.
