Obituary of Charles Pike

Charles Pike 77, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 4, 2023 at Columbia Memorial
Hospital in Hudson, NY with family by his side. Charles was born November 11, 1945 to parents
Charlotte and Raymond Pike Jr. in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Charles was predeceased by his parents, his brother Stephen, and his wife Donna. He is survived by his
sons Dean (Robin), Glenn (Fleda) of North Carolina and daughter Jennifer (Nick) Demarest, Sister
Susan and brother Tom of Wappingers Falls, Brother John (Peggy) of Red Hook and sisters Carol
Versace and Ann Pallone of Poughkeepsie. He is also survived by granddaughters Amanda, Katherine,
Grace and Annabelle, in addition to many other relatives and friends who loved him dearly.

Charlie as he was known to friends (Chuck to family) graduated from Roy C Ketcham High School and
it was during that time that he met Donna who became the love of his life and wife on September 11,
1965. Donna and Charlie had 56 wonderful years of marriage until her death in 2022. Donna and
Charlie loved to travel and managed to visit all 50 states during their time together in addition to
several other countries. He was a real family man with a wicked sense of humor who kept everyone
laughing. He was also a great poet and storyteller, writing a fictional firehouse story every year for his
kids and grandkids using their names as the characters within.

Charlie worked for IBM for 28 years and after an early retirement he became a paramedic. Charlie was
a volunteer fire fighter and Fire Chief for a time with East Clinton Fire Department from 1973 until
2002 when he moved to Earlton in Greene County where he joined the Earlton Fire Department and
remained there until his death. During his time in Greene County he received an award for 40 years of
service as a first responder an award he was very proud of.

At one point he was the oldest working paramedic in New York State. Charlie also went to North
Carolina during the winter sometimes and couldn’t just relax, he worked for Durham County EMS and
was a volunteer fire fighter for the Stoney Hill Fire Department.

Charlie was also on the Board of Directors and was a volunteer for the American Heart Association.
He taught many classes, including basic, advanced and pediatric advanced life support. He taught
CPR/AED instructor courses for teachers who passed the skills on to their students. He saved the life
of a man in an airport while on vacation and his story was featured in the 2006 American Heart
Association’s Annual Report.

Charlie’s happy place was his firehouse/museum that he built on his property in Greene County. It is
filled with a plethora of antiques and collectibles all firehouse related, including a full size antique fire
truck that he loved giving rides to others in. After his wife passed he found solace by going down there
and spending time.

Charlie had a real passion for helping his fellow man, a passion he passed on to his two sons who
became career firemen and to his daughter who is a volunteer firefighter in California sometimes
fighting their devastating wildfires. To say he was a man of great integrity with a deep commitment to
service in his community is probably a bit of an understatement and he will be sorely missed by all
who knew and loved him.

There will be two funeral services. The first one will be on Friday, October 20, 2023, 2-4 p.m. at
Millspaugh Camerato Funeral Home – 139 Jefferson Heights, Catskill, NY 12414. Additionally, there
will be a firemen’s wake at 3:30 p.m. The second service will be Saturday, October 21, 2023, 12-4 p.m.
at Timothy Doyle Funeral Home at 371 Hooker Ave, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603.