Chester Alexander Waldron, 93 years of age, passed away on March 4, 2017 after a courageous battle with cancer. Born in Alexandria, VA on Jan. 20, 1924, the first son of Chester Lloyd Waldron and Sarah Olive Stewart Waldron. Chester is preceded in death by his two loving wives, Bettie Belle Keck and Anne Marie Holt. Chester grew up in Arlington, VA. Where he and his younger brother Glenn ran the neighborhood, with every day an adventure for the raucous and fun loving “Waldron Boys”. He attended Washington and Lee High School in Arlington, where he played football and ran track. Graduating from high school in 1941, Chester did a post graduate year at Fork Union Military Academy in VA. At Fork Union Chester ran track and sang in the Glee Club. Chester was accepted by Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI) and attended for one year before being accepted into the Army Aviation Cadet Program. His military service began at Mustang Field in Oklahoma City, OK and continued at several locations with Chester completing the Advanced Aviation Couse of Instruction at Eagle Pass Army Air Field, TX. World War II wound down and Chester was discharged from Army Air Corp in 1946. Chester return to his beloved VPI, where ran track and graduated in 1949 with his wife Bettie by his side. Chester attended law school at the University of Virginia and George Washington University, but needed to enter the work force to support his wife and their growing family before he finished his law degree. He initially worked for the United Mine Workers as a financial analyst, and after passing the required examination, he joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1950. After training at Quantico, VA., Chester was a Senior Agent in the New York and New Jersey FBI offices. He was also the FBI Resident Field Agent in Bluefield, WV. With his wife and three children in tow, Chester left the FBI in 1953 and joined Sears Roebuck and Co. as a member of their Labor Relations Department. Assignments with Sears took him to Philadelphia and Boston. In an extremely unfortunate accident, Chester lost his beloved wife, Bettie in 1971. Chester did find love again and married Anne Holt in 1973. Retiring from Sears in 1986 as the Director of Employee and Labor Relations, Chester and Anne returned to the south, moving first to Pinehurst, NC, and later to Sarasota, FL. After Chester lost Anne to Alzheimer’s disease in 2005, Chester moved to Charleston to be closer to family and settled in Bishop Gadsden. In his ten years at Bishop Gadsden, Chester made many friends, and served on several committees. Chester was a generous, loyal and loving father and friend to all. His faith and family were foremost in his life. He was also an avid golfer! He served as an active member of the VPI Ut Prosim Society, and the Society of Former Agents of the FBI. His determination, love of family and faith kept him going and he was very hopeful that his cancer would go into remission. Chester’s family would like to thank all his wonderful friends, Hospice of Charleston, all the amazing nurses, doctors and staff at Bishop Gadsden. Also, a special thank you to Jeanne Herndon for being a special friend and being by his side. Chester is survived by his four children, Gary Todd Waldron (Linda), Bartlett, TN, Richard Stewart Waldron (Meg), Sinking Spring, PA, Julia Waldron Shaw (Jim), Huger, SC, Adam Alexander Waldron (Meg), Chadds Ford, PA, and by his brother, Glenn Stewart Waldron (Audrey), Gainesville, VA. Chester also has eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 25, 2017, 2pm at the Bishop Gadsden Chapel, 1 Bishop Gadsden Way, Charleston, SC. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to either the Bishop Gadsden Employee Appreciation Fund or the Bishop Gadsden Residence Assistance Fund. Arrangements under the direction of Carolina Memorial Park, Funerals and Cremations. Please visit our website at www.carolinamemorial.com for online condolences.
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