Obituary of Charles A. Chick'' Reilly

Charles A. Reilly “Chick,” Jr. of Burlington, MA, passed away on May 7, 2017. Chick was born on May 7, 1928 to the late Florence “Floss” (Lloyd) and Charles A. Reilly, Sr. He was born in Somerville, the third of four siblings, and was raised in Stoneham, where he attended Stoneham High School, Class of 1947. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1948 and was deployed to active duty in the Korean War. He was later awarded the Bronze Star for heroic and meritorious service. After leaving the service, Chick went to work for his father at Reilly & Son’s Esso Station in Stoneham. He later relocated a few blocks down Main Street and opened the Reilly’s Citgo on the corner of Summer and Main Streets. Chick operated the business until his retirement in 1991. Upon returning from Korea, Chick married Jeanie, his wife of sixty-one years and mother of their three children. After living in Stoneham for ten years, they relocated to Burlington to raise their family. Chick was a funny, charming guy that enjoyed the company of people of all ages. Whether it was a customer or friend stopping by the Citgo Station to chat or a neighbor dropping by for a swim in the pool, Chick was always happy to see them. He was quick with a joke and always the life of the party. One of the things that Chick enjoyed most in life was children. He loved picking his granddaughter, Victoria, up from school and babysitting for her and her friends. He remembered everyone he met – from all of the mothers in the Girl Scout troop to the many parents waiting outside to pick up their children from school. If there was a theme to Chick’s life, it was most certainly camaraderie and the love of people. In his later years, Chick was a loyal patron of Sammy’s Deli in Burlington and would go there each day and voluntarily help with the newspapers. He became such a fixture at the local eatery, that they placed a bench out front and named it “Chickie’s Chair.” He would always regale his family with “Sammy’s Stories” and loved to introduce them to his friends whenever they accompanied him there. Chick was generous, kind and prone to showering family and friends with little gifts and trinkets. He was a coin aficionado, an interest that he shared with his son, John and his son-in-law, Randy. Chick had quite the sweet tooth and always had an assorted stash of treats close by; he was known to frequently dip his hand into the cookie jar. He looked forward to watching his daily game shows, crime dramas and the news, and liked sitting out in the yard under his cherry tree in order to chat with the neighbors. Chick was the beloved husband of the late Jeannette “Jeanie” (MacDonald) who passed away on April 30, 2017. He was the devoted father of Debra Gonchar and her husband Randy of Reading, and of Charles and John Reilly of Stoneham. He was the proud grandfather of Victoria Gonchar. He was the cherished brother of Richard “Dick” Reilly and his late wife, Jackie of Rochester, NH, the late Florence “Rusty” Sebastian and her late husband, David and the late Irene Filmore and her late husband, Lloyd. He was the caring brother-in-law of Mary Jane Decarsky of Tewksbury, Sarah Lendrim and her husband, Robert of Maryland, and William MacDonald and his wife, Joanne, of Burlington. In lieu of flowers, memorials in Chick’s name may be made to the New England Center and Home for Veterans, Advancement Office, P.O. Box 845257, Boston, MA 02284-5257 or at www.nechv.org. Visitation will be held at the Edward V Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (Exit 34 off Rt. 128/95 Woburn side) on Saturday, May 13th from 11 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Malachy Church, 99 Bedford St., Burlington at 1:30pm. Burial will be private.