It is with heavy hearts that we share the passing of an amazing husband, father, and grandfather, Hugh Charles Barker.
Hugh Charles, known as Charlie, was born on a farm in Richmond, Indiana, a small rural town, in Eastern Indiana, where he learned the power of hard work. He lived with his parents, Frank Hugh and Bessie (White) Barker, and his three younger brothers, Tom, Eugene and Howard, working the fields with horse-drawn plows. He vowed to not live on a farm all his life although he would always keep his farm heritage in his heart as he traveled to his family farm every summer. He held a lifelong love of cars, especially Fords, which started as he experienced the early evolution of the automobile.
After seeing a barn-storming pilot land his airplane in the family’s fields he became awestruck and his love of airplanes began. After graduating from high school he journeyed to Chicago, chasing his fascination of airplanes and feeding his curiosity of how things work. Once in Chicago he enrolled in flight and aircraft school. His passion for flight and all things mechanical led him to Miami, Florida, and Eastern Airlines, where he worked for forty three years.
During his employment at Eastern Airlines WWII erupted and Charlie enlisted in the Army Air Corp. While serving his country in the European Theatre Charlie was injured, recovered and reenlisted in the Army Air Corp and served as part of the Occupation Army in Germany.
After the war he returned to his employment at Eastern Airlines and he married the love of his life, Alma "Mo" Wanda Jaeger, and shared 68 years of marriage together. Together they built a life in Miami where Charlie was always finding ways to help others and served as a role model, while working hard to provide for his family. Charlie had a passion for teaching others anything and everything mechanical and an insatiable curiosity. He loved adventure and his life was filled with it from flying his personal airplanes, doing ‘Touch and Gos” on Daytona Beach, and racing motorcycles. Charlie also loved the out of doors which included adventurous camping vacations with his beloved family that were famous for lasting for weeks, and most of all bird hunting. Charlie anticipated hunting season every year with hunting trips to the Everglades and Central Florida for wild turkey and quail and hunting trips with buddies annually to Michigan to hunt pheasant. Charlie welcomed hard work and was proud but modest about his accomplishments.
After retirement from Eastern and daughters raised, Charlie and Mo relocated to Orlando where he was the “fix-it guy” for the neighborhood. Always helping others was a way of life for Charlie. He never hesitated to help family, friends or strangers. When asked on his 92nd birthday what advice he had to share he said, “To be honest and learn everything you can.” Charlie lived his life as he taught his family, “It is your conscience you have to live with every day.” His family has fond memories of him loving fireworks, strawberries, apple pies, yard work, hikes with children and grandchildren, drinking black coffee 24/7, gardening, splitting wood, teaching everyone anything he could share, being a whiz at peeling an apple and making sure everyone ate their fruits and veggies. He is survived by his wife, Alma, two daughters; Janet Barker, of Kalamazoo, Michigan and Karen Robbins, of Deland, Florida, four grandchildren; Amelia Barker-King, Sean Robbins, Graham Barker-King and Lauren Robbins as well as many nieces and nephews.The family asks that you “Pay It Forward”. If you would like to pass on a gift in his honor please make donations to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.
A graveside memorial service is scheduled for Sunday, November 1st, at 4 p.m. at Deltona Memorial Gardens, 1295 Saxon Blvd, Orange City, FL 32763.
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