Charles E. Wolford
Funeral Mass
10:00 a.m. Saturday, February 22, 2025
St. Patrick’s Catholic Church
Missouri Valley, Iowa
Family would like to invite everyone back to church for a time of lunch and fellowship following the committal
With deep sorrow and profound gratitude for a life well-lived, we announce the passing of our beloved Deacon Charles E. Wolford.
Deacon Charlie
Wolford, loving husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and friend,
went home to the Lord on Nov. 3, 2024, on the Feast of St. Charles Borromeo,
his patron saint. He passed away peacefully at home in Redondo Beach,
surrounded by family and friends.
Born in Omaha,
Neb., on Sept. 9, 1926, to Leo and Lucille Wolford, Charlie was the third of
five children. He graduated from Holy Name High School, became a daily Mass
attendee, and joined the U.S. Navy at 17, serving during WWII and the Korean
War. Afterward, he studied at Creighton University.
Charlie married
Gurina Anne Larsen at St. Peter’s Church in Omaha on May 1, 1954. They raised
six children—Joe, Mary, Tom, Annemarie, Bill, and Mark—and were blessed with
six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He worked for
Union Pacific Railroad in Omaha and later for Chicago North Western Railroad in
Missouri Valley, retiring after 40 years. Charlie was ordained as a Permanent
Deacon on Oct. 9, 1993, and served for 31 years. He was the first Deacon of St.
Patrick’s Church in Missouri Valley and also served as a hospital chaplain.
Charlie started Meals on Wheels in Missouri Valley and helped establish the
Rand Community Center.
An avid cyclist,
Charlie participated in Ragbrai from 1987 to 2005, raising awareness for
various causes. At 80, he did mission work in Central America with the
Maryknoll Fathers.
In his later
years, Charlie moved to Redondo Beach, Calif., to live with his daughter
Annemarie and son-in-law Bob. He served as a deacon for the Archdiocese of Los
Angeles, assisting at St. James Church and with the Carmelite Sisters. He also
participated as a Deacon at Fatima, Lourdes, and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
At 96, he traveled to Washington, D.C., on the Honor Flight as a WWII and
Korean War Veteran.
Charlie lived a
full and blessed life, devoted to his family, faith, and community.