OWENS, CHARLES “CHARLIE” THOMAS - 1921 - 2012 - Charles “Charlie” Thomas Owens, of Memramcook, NB, passed away peacefully on Saturday September 29, 2012 at The Moncton Hospital at the age of 90. Born in Moncton, Charlie attended St. Bernard’s school and was an active participant in many sports, preferring, especially, hockey and baseball. Charlie enlisted in the Carlton York Regiment in 1940 and served overseas in the Second World War in the Royal Canadian Army as a motorcycle dispatch rider in the Third Division Signal Corps L of C. He was badly injured in the war and was Missing in Action for a period of time, but was found and made a full recovery, then returned to his unit for the duration of the war. Charlie re-enlisted after the war to serve in Canada’s Arctic in various remote stations as a radio operator with the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals. Charlie eventually re-settled in Moncton and owned and operated his own business, ABCON Industrial Supply, for 25 years. Charlie was a member of the Royal Canadian Legion and was active in the Moncton Minor Hockey Association as both a coach and league coordinator during the 1970’s. An avid outdoorsman throughout his life, Charlie loved fishing and hunting and passed this love of the outdoors on to his children and was active into his late 80’s. He will also be remembered for his love of storytelling and for his devotion to his family. He is survived by his wife Hazel Owens (Gosselin), four sons, John Owens (Arlene) of LaDuke, Alberta; Rodney Owens (Elke) of Lorneville, Nova Scotia; James “Jimmy” Owens (Denise) of Moncton, New Brunswick and Charlie Owens (Christa) of Moncton, New Brunswick; grandchildren, Joshua, Cassandra, Julia, Daniel, Lauren, Emma, Matthew and Sophie. He is also survived by his sister, Rose Farewell (Owens) of Whitby, Ontario and brother, James “Jimmy” Owens of Kelowna, British Columbia and numerous nieces and nephews. Charlie was predeceased by his parents, John “Jack” and Jesse Owens (Pascal) of Moncton, his brother, William “Bill” Owens of Moncton and his sisters, Esther Paradis (Owens) of Englewood, New Jersey: Mary Owens-Wyckoff of Hackensack, New Jersey: Lillian Langlois (Owens) of St. Foy, Quebec and Annabelle MacKenzie (Owens) of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. The family would like to thank the dedication of the staff at the Palliative Care Unit of The Moncton Hospital.
Visitation at Ferguson Knowles Funeral Home, 1657 Mountain Road, Moncton (858-1995) on Tuesday from 2:00 to 4:00pm and 7:00 to 9:00pm. Moncton Legion Branch #6 Memorial Service, Tuesday at 4:00pm. Funeral Mass to be held at St. Bernard’s Roman Catholic Church, 43 Botsford St. on Wednesday October 3, 2012 at 9:30 am with Rev. Allison Carroll officiating. Reception following the mass in the Church Hall. Interment, Notre-Dame de l’Annonciation parish Cemetery, Pré-d’En-Haut, NB. In lieu of flowers, donations in Charlie’s memory may be made to The Friends of The Moncton Hospital Foundation (135 MacBeth Ave. Moncton, E1C 6Z8, www.friendsfoundation.ca). Online condolences at www.fergusonknowlesfh.com