Obituary of Charles Holmquest

Charles A. Holmquest, A Retired Electrical Engineer, passed away at the Sawtelle Family Hospice House, on Saturday afternoon, May 19, 2012. The beloved husband of Ann (Coffey) he was 78 years old. Charles A. “Chuck” Holmquest was born on August 12, 1933 to Alfred and Marie Holmquest, and raised in Lubbock, Texas. Educated at Texas Tech University and graduating with a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering, Chuck went on to receive a Masters in Engineering from MIT. MIT is where he met his wife of 54 years, Ann Coffey Holmquest of Fitchburg, Mass. During his years at Texas Tech, Chuck joined the Air Force ROTC. Chuck and Ann relocated to Dallas, Texas for a short period where Chuck took a position with Texas Instruments, before being assigned to Hanscom Air Force Base. Captain Holmquest proudly served and was honorably discharged from the USAF in 1968. Chuck and Ann settled in Burlington where they raised five children: Christopher Holmquest of Marshfield, Tracy Grella of Norfolk, Julie Finn of Westwood, Charles Kirk Holmquest of Hingham and Ellen Palumbo of North Andover. In addition to their five children, they gained loving daughters and sons in-law, Kathy Holmquest, Richard Grella, Tom Finn, and Suzanne Holmquest, along with nine wonderful grandchildren, Brian, Sean and Kyra Holmquest; Katrina Grella; Samantha and Alexandra Finn; Anders Holmquest; and Kiley and Madison Palumbo. Chuck and Ann’s home was filled with a great deal of love and lively laughter, especially around the holidays. They regularly entertained their growing, extended family and many friends. Chuck’s sense of humor and zest for life shined through in everything from his relationships, to his work in the defense industry, to his pursuits including traveling, running marathons, playing golf, and many ski trips. He was always making life a fun adventure with his family and friends. He will be greatly missed. Chuck was the beloved husband of 54 years of Ann (Coffey). He was the loving father of Christopher Holmquest & his wife Kathleen of Marshfield, Tracy Grella & her husband Richard of Norfolk, Julie Finn & her husband Thomas of Westwood, Kirk Holmquest & his wife Suzanne of Hingham and Ellen Palumbo of North Andover. Grandfather of Brian, Sean, Kyra, & Anders Holmquest, Katrina Grella, Samantha & Alexandra Finn and Kiley & Madison Palumbo. Funeral from the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (Exit 34 off Rt. 128, Woburn side) on Wednesday, May 23 at 9 a.m. Followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Margaret’s Church, 111 Winn St., Burlington at 10 a.m. Visiting hours Tuesday 4-8 p.m. Interment in Pine Haven Cemetery, Burlington. Memorials in Chuck’s name may be made to VNA of Middlesex East & Visiting Nurse Hospice, 607 North St., Suite 17, Wakefield, MA 01880 or Dana Farber Cancer Institute – Jimmy Fund, 10 Brookline Place 6th Floro, Brookline, MA 02445-7226. Words from Chris Chuck from Boston - where do we begin From the countless stories of you and Annie ending up in first class on an airplane, or the VIP section of The Rose Bowl Parade when you were not supposed to be, your many mishaps with sailing endeavors - from to being sucked into a drainage pipe throughout the town of Lincoln while tubing, or capsizing your buddies boat, then struggling to get back to the boat, then to get it upright, and get yourself back to shore, Skiing “off piste” – “out of bounds” – or into oncoming rescue helicopters, Making friends with strangers during your travels who somehow were able to get you preferential treatment at places from down the street - to St. Martin, Budapest, Italy, or England, or the dozens of shenanigans that all of us got into with you - with all those stories, how can we even begin to remember everything you were. I would say, the stories are too countless and too many to try and tell all right now, so the way I would like to remember Dad is through two things he taught me through the way he lived his life every day. First - As we all know, and we are all a testament to: my Dad would make a friend out of anyone and everyone. Any person who crossed his path was not just another human on this Earth - they were a friend in the making. He had no qualms of striking up a conversation with a complete stranger, something which can be true of many people - however, Chuck would always take it one step further in that after this spontaneous conversation, he and his new-found buddy would be headed to dinner, out on his new friends boat, or playing golf the next day at his friends country club. If a person was difficult to get along with, no problem, Chuck would be able to make a friend out of you. Secondly - He never accepted anyone for anything different than who they were, never tried to change anyone, never got caught up as most of us do in questioning “Why are they doing that?” He treated everyone well, regardless of all circumstances. Annie and Papa Chuck’s house always has had an open door policy, literally never locking the door to their house, much to the annoyance of some of us, and Papa Chuck had that same policy with anyone he met. Anyone was welcome and anyone would be taken care of. He was there just to help you out and be your friend. Of course, Annie and Chuck were two peas in a pod, always saying Yes to any fun plans, always finding a way to have a good laugh every day. I am soo lucky that I was able to grow up with them as role models of the friendship and love that we should all search for. Dad also taught me that the most important thing you can do in life is to love - and not simply just to love your spouse, but to love everything you do, everyone around you, where ever you are, and never stop that no matter how bad things may get. He showed each of us what it is to love your family, love your job, and love life in general. For him, life was an adventure which he was not going to let pass him by without really delving into it. I think about Kyra in high school, everyone asking her - what she thinks she would like to do in college, and she looked to around thinking “Hey, Papa Chuck has a pretty good life, maybe I should be an electrical engineer.” And that she did. Just this past weekend she graduated from Villanova with a degree in electrical engineering, inducted into the same honors fraternity, wearing the same EE bent that Papa Chuck would have worn 57 years ago at Texas Tech. When Dad got the news about the cancer back in November, I was lucky enough to be with him - and I want to share the first words that came out of his mouth after the doctor gave him the news: “I have been very lucky and have had a great life” “I wouldn’t change a single thing, wouldn’t have done anything differently”.. and “I was so lucky to be with Annie” ……. Dad truly built his life (and everything in it, like the house, the tennis court, and even our first color TV) in the way that he wanted to: a self-made man, and because of this, was always happy, smiling, laughing and joking. I think the greatest way we can remember and honor his memory is for all of us, no matter how old or set in our ways we are, to do the same. Cards will fall, but it’s up to you to play them in a way that makes you happy and makes you smile. Dad, I know you are here, and you are asking us “Why are all of you here?” “Don’t you have something better to do, like play a round of golf, head out sailing, or go off for a run? “The day’s being wasted away sitting here!” I can see your face, surprised that all these people came. But you know what Chuck; none of us are surprised at all. You taught all of us how to live life to the fullest, right to the very last day, and you touched each and every one of our lives, changing them for the better, giving us a great friend, father, grandfather, and husband to travel, play, smile, and laugh with. We’ll all miss you greatly and our lives will be a little less full without you. Let’s now all give a standing ovation to one of the best men we ever knew.