Charles H. DeLoach

Charles Hubert DeLoach, age 92, of Wauchula, entered his eternal home with the Lord on May 21, 2015. He was born March 27, 1923 in Hampton, South Carolina, the son of Ben Tillman DeLoach and Bessie Peeples DeLoach, both of whom preceded him in death. His father served as Clerk of the Circuit Court of Hampton County for over 50 years. His mother served Hampton County as Librarian for 20 years, being the second County Librarian. After graduating with honors from high school at Hampton High School in 1940 he attended Furman University in Greenville, S.C. for 2 ½ years before entering the United States Navy in March, 1943. He served in the U.S. Navy for three years during World War II. He was a Radioman in the U.S. Naval Armed Guard (a contingent of Navy Gunners and Communication Petty Officers aboard Merchant Ships delivering ammunition and other war material and food supplies to our troops in the Pacific Theatre). He was awarded the WWII Victory Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal with Battle Star and the Congressional Appreciation Award for Service in the U.S. Navy Armed Guard. Upon his Honorable Discharge from the U.S. Navy in 1946 he attended and received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration at the University of South Carolina in Columbia in June 1947. While at Carolina he was a member and vice-president of the Sigma Chi social fraternity, president of the University Chorus, member of the University YMCA, and several leadership and debating fraternities. His business career stemmed 40 years in the insurance claims field with Liberty Mutual, National Union, and Allstate Insurance Companies. This provided him and his family with the opportunity to live in many places of the “good ole USA” including High Point, North Carolina, Miami, Jacksonville and St. Petersburg in FL, Atlanta, GA, Pittsburgh, PA and Chicago, IL. At the time of his retirement in 1987 he was Home Office Commercial Claims Director with Allstate Insurance Company in South Barrington, IL (a suburb of Chicago). Upon his retirement in 1987 he and his beloved wife, Bettye, moved to St. Petersburg Beach, FL and subsequently in 2004 to Wauchula. He was a member of the First Baptist Church in Wauchula, the American Legion Post 2 and the Wednesday Musicale of Wauchula. He served as Deacon in several Baptist Churches during his lifetime. Because of his many moves he also served in the United Presbyterian Church as Deacon and Ruling Elder and as a Deacon in the United Church of Christ. He and his wife, Bettye, were active members of the choirs of those churches for over 50 years. He and his wife, Bettye, were Emeritus members of The Friendship Force International where he also served for several years as President of the Florida Suncoast Chapter in St. Petersburg (one of the Worldwide network of chapters). The Friendship Force International mission is to provide friendship and goodwill between nations by home hosting of ambassadors between countries and other cultures. Each Exchange included a week’s stay with a family. As a member of the St. Pete Chapter, Charlie and his wife, Bettye, participated in numerous cultural exchanges to England, Scotland, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, New Zealand, Australia, Japan and Thailand, and they also home hosted ambassadors from those countries, Russia and other countries and in the USA. . Charlie regarded this as one of the highlights of his retired life because life time friends were made all over the World and visits with these friends continued after the formal cultural exchanges. He was an avid genealogist and has researched and developed manuscripts on history and collected material and pictures of his various ancestral lines and those of his wife, Bettye Usher DeLoach. One of the manuscripts of his father, Ben Tillman DeLoach has been gifted to the Hampton Town Museum in Hampton, South Carolina. He is survived by his daughters, Debbie DeLoach Abraham of Boca Raton, FL, Kathy DeLoach Chapman of Jacksonville, FL, Barbara DeLoach Hand of Wauchula, and his son, Robert Michael DeLoach of Charlotte, NC. He is also survived by eight grandchildren: Keith Abraham and Karen Abraham Bahn of Boca Raton, Breena DeLoach Schermerhorn of Black Mountain, NC; Michael Robert DeLoach of Tampa, Tucker Davis DeLoach of Charlotte, NC; Ashley Breeze Chapman , John Parker Chapman, and Sarah Chapman Ferris of Jacksonville; Sons-in-Law Larry Abraham, John Chapman and Jamie Hand and Daughters in law: Nancy Smith DeLoach and Pamela Hughes; two Great granddaughters, Scout and Cass Schermerhorn, great grandson, Ryer Schermerhorn; and two nieces, Barbara Ann McMillan Brunson and Linda Kay McMillan O’Quinn of Hampton, SC He is also survived by two step granddaughters and six step great grandchildren. Preceded in death by his wife, Bettye Usher of 62 years. Memorial Services will be held Saturday, May 30th, 2015 at 1pm at the First Baptist Church in Wauchula, Florida. Burial of his cremated ashes will take place at a later time in a family plot at the Hampton Cemetery in Hampton, SC. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Good Shepherd Hospice, 105 Arneson Avenue, Auburndale, FL 33823; P.E.O. Chapter BP, Florida, c/o Treasurer J. Wooten, 5751 55th Terrace, St. Petersburg, FL 33709; First Baptist Church, 1570 West Main Street, Wauchula, FL 33873; or The American Legion, Department of Florida, P.O. Box 540569, Orlando, FL 32854.

Charles H. DeLoach

March 27, 1923 - May 21, 2015