I met Charlie and his dear friend Randy Beitel by complete happenstance a number of years ago when my partner Greg and I were staying at the Glacier Park Lodge in East Glacier, MT. Greg and I were standing on the front porch of the lodge when Charlie and Randy and a third friend disembarked from Amtrak and were heading up the path to the front entrance. An immediate recognition among gay men, with the result that a conversation ensued between Charlie and me. This was not long after David had died and Charlie was still grieving, the reason for the trip I think. I ran into Charlie on the sun porch of the hotel at which time we were able to have a longer chat and exchanged contact information. Subsequently when two friends plus Greg and I made plans to do some backpacking in the North Cascades using the little town of Stehekin as our home base, I told Charlie of our trip and asked if he would like to join us for a day or two before our trek. Stehekin is a paradisiacal gem, reachable only by sea plane or a delightful four hour boat ride up Lake Chelan. Charlie researched my proposal and agreed to take me up on my suggestion. The five of us had a great time there, dining together and taking walks. The same Stehekin gathering was repeated several years later.
As a couple of folks observed, Charlie was no braggart when it came to his seminal role in gay activism in Seattle and the State of Washington. He never mentioned it to me until as a librarian, I thought I would alert Charlie about the publication of the book GAY SEATTLE by the University of Washington Press suspecting that it would be of interest to him. Charlie thanked me and then gently suggested that I look up his name in the index. I did and was gobsmacked. Thank you Charlie for your friendship and for all that you did for the LGBT community in Seattle. In your honor I wore my rainbow top hat for your service. I hope it made you smile. -- Eric Smith, Durham NC