Charles Arnold Chuck Warren, 68

Charles Arnold "Chuck" Warren, 68, passed away on Monday, April 12, 2010, in his sleep, after a long battle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and complications. Chuck was born Sept. 13, 1941, in Tuolumne County Hospital, Sonora, Calif. His parents, Frances Arnold Warren and Francis Cullers Warren, lived in nearby Tuolumne City, near his grandparents. His maternal grandparents were among the founders of the Mother Lode town of Tuolumne. Family members served as mayor, law enforcement and other offices, and eventually began the telephone company for that community. The family was known for a generous and helping spirit. Chuck was deeply influenced by his family s commitment to community. While in his late teens, Chuck worked for the community funeral home. He had many experiences that shaped his life from this period. On one occasion he was sent to Yosemite to secure the body of a gentleman who had passed away in a public place. He was assigned difficult tasks, such as securing bodies from accident sites along busy highways in that popular vacation area. Chuck said that those years helped him learn to be calm and reassuring in life s difficult situations. Later Chuck joined the Army and was stationed at Fort Ord. On a trip home for the holidays, Chuck experienced an event that influenced him to an even stronger commitment to help others. He observed a fiery automobile accident in which five teenagers were trapped in a burning car. He and others struggled to get close enough to the car to free the teenagers, to no avail. He vowed to himself to learn firefighting in order to be more able to save lives in the future. While in the Army, Chuck was assigned to the mortuary unit and was sent to a location close to military troops that were poised for attack in the Cuban Missile Crisis. He said it was another time of learning to deal with his own ability to respond appropriately to serious crises. Chuck worked for many years in the Bay Area for a major towing company and had been considered a most valuable employee. His knowledge of mountainous terrain, busy cities and freeways made him capable in Montana as well. Locally, Chuck Warren owned and operated Bill s Towing from 1987 to 2003, providing big rig as well as all other towing during that period. He had many stories from that part of his life, including towing at least one Glacier National Park red bus, logging trucks, motor homes, retrieving stolen vehicles out of deep Tally Lake, and of course, many tragic accident sites. He loved the Flathead Valley and its people, and seemed to carry a map of every highway and back road in his head and in his heart. In spite of his experiences in dealing with life s toughest circumstances, those who knew Chuck found him to have a strong, matter-of-fact and optimistic approach to whatever needed to be done, and an irrepressible, rowdy sense of humor. Chuck will be very much missed by those he associated with and by friends, loved ones, and medical people assisting with his health, for his constant teasing, harassing, and doing his best to make everything funny. He loved people and made friends with as many as he could along the way. Chuck was most proud of his work with Evergreen Fire and Rescue. He was active for about 15 years and then served on the district board of trustees for about two terms. Chuck knew how important the skills and knowledge of firefighting are. He is reported to have entered about 50 involved burning buildings over time, and had good recollections of doing so with his friend, former Fire Chief Ken Cox. He held offices with the department, such as president, and assistant fire marshal, while his good friend Ted Stewart was fire marshal. Chuck considered it his greatest contribution to have served on Evergreen Fire and Rescue s district board of trustees while the new building was being designed and built. He was most pleased that the new building was state of the art for response, and for training, and could remain so for the 70 years for which it was planned. Chuck felt privileged to have contributed his own knowledge of firefighting, of the needs of the firefighters, and of the community for this extremely important project. He was proud of the community for voting for the funding in difficult economic times, and very proud of the design researched and collaborated on by Fire Chief Craig Williams and others. He was so very pleased at the open houses held for public and professionals, to see and hear their positive responses. Chuck was proud to have served with the Flathead County Sheriff s Posse. He served energetically and faithfully, handling the calling of volunteers to assignments: basketball games, parades, Whitefish fireworks, directing traffic and other duties. He also worked these assignments, including the fair, at times being placed in charge at the fair at night. It was his privilege to work at such sensitive sites as the small plane crash near the City Airport, and take shifts at night to assist in maintaining security at such incidents as a homicide in Ferndale, the train derailing in Columbia Falls, and guarding prisoners in the hospital. Chuck often commented how much he enjoyed working with the posse, and regretted that his health issues eventually made it impossible. In the last couple of years it was Chuck s great joy to drive a school bus with Treasure State Transportation, driving Evergreen students for District 5. He thoroughly enjoyed his students, watching their progress as people and enjoying most of their shenanigans. He looked forward to the camaraderie of his fellow bus drivers and meeting with them frequently over coffee after morning runs. Chuck is survived by his longtime partner, Susan Mary Mohlenhoff; his daughter, Kathryne Mame Vela and husband, Patrick; their son, Jasen, who is fire chief of the Montague, Calif., Volunteer Fire Department and whose employment is dispatcher for the CalFire System; his son, Charley Cullers Warren and wife, Stephanie; and their son, Skilier. A memorial and celebration of life service and buffet will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 11 at the Evergreen Fire and Rescue building. The family suggests memorial gifts be given to Shodair and Muscular Dystrophy Society. Buffalo Hill Funeral Home is caring for Chuck s family.