Charlie Daniel Pond Obituary (1920 - 2011)

WINTHROP- Charlie Daniel Pond, 91, passed away on Monday, October 3, 2011 in Veterans Village at the VA Healthcare System @ Togus. Charlie was born in Detroit, Maine on April 30, 1920. He graduated from Newport High School in 1938. In 1943, Charlie enlisted in the United States Army, where he served his country with the 42nd Rainbow Division in the European Division Theater until his honorable discharge on July 15, 1946. He met his wife, Ann Sullivan, in Hartford, CT and they married December 10, 1943. After Charlie’s discharge from the service they moved to Maine, settling in Winthrop in 1955. Through the years, Charlie was a member of the Odd Fellows, Alfred W. Maxwell Jr. American Legion Post #40, Winthrop Congregational Church and years later, the East Winthrop Baptist Church. Charlie was a man proud of his heritage. He believed in America and flew the flag every day, telling all he knew that Maine was God’s country and there was no place else on earth he wanted to live. A hardworking man, Charlie worked for Sampson’s Supermarket, where he managed several stores in the Augusta area for 36 years. After retirement, Charlie couldn’t just sit at home so he began work for Downeast Pharmacy, where he delivered pharmaceuticals to nursing homes up and down the coast, retiring a second time at age 78. Charlie loved his family and all that family life would bring. Oftentimes there would be as many as thirty or more friends and family gathered at his home to celebrate holidays, summer barbecues or just dropping by to say hello. On Saturday evenings you could find Charlie and Ann out dancing. From the Blue Goose in Belfast to Melody Ranch in Fairfield, they enjoyed the music, their friends and the entertainment. Charlie’s sage advice to everyone is “Drive slow, Drink water”, which one grandchild has interpreted as his grandfather’s way of saying, “I love you, I care about you”. Charlie was predeceased by his parents, Everett and Blanche (Lord) Pond, and four sisters and two brothers, Evelyn Mirante, Abbie Brown, Lillian Mingo, Beatrice Priest, Lloyd Pond and Franklin Wyman. Charlie is survived by his wife, Ann, a marriage lasting 67 years; his seven children, Patricia Pond-Schmitt, Stephen Pond, Sally Gould, Kathryn Higgins, Sanda Barry, Amy Pond and Chuck Pond; 17 grandchildren; 16 great grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, in-laws and out-laws too many to mention but not too many to be remembered. Family and friends may visit from 5:00-8:00pm on Thursday, Oct. 6th, at Roberts Funeral Home, 62 Bowdoin St., Winthrop. A tribute to the life of Charlie Daniel Pond will also be held at the funeral home at 1:00pm on Saturday, Oct. 8th with family friend, Rev. Earl Chapman, officiating. Interment with full military honors will immediately follow at Glenside Cemetery, Turkey Lane, Winthrop. Memories, condolences, photos and videos may be shared with the family on the obituary page of our website at www.khrfuneralhomes.com