This is my uncle, Charles Sanchez or more commonly known as Uncle Charlie. I think he took after my grandfather the most. Not just in looks but also his philosophy when it came to family. You give your all for your family and protect them as best you can.
When ever me and my younger sister would spend the night at my uncle’s house, he would always go out and get McDonald’s for breakfast the next morning. We would get up and he would just be getting back to the house with about 6 deluxe breakfasts, 3 pancake breakfasts and a couple of breakfast sandwiches. He had three kids of his own, plus me and my sister and sometimes my other cousin would spend the night as well. He was always a very generous man!
One story my mom told me about my Uncle Charlie was that when he was 16, he lied about his age and enlisted in the army. He was able to get as far as the beginning of boot camp before they found out and kicked him out of the Army. When he was 17 years old, he lied again and enlisted again, but this time, because he was very close to being 18 years old, they kept him in the army. When I attended his funeral and he was buried, because of his military service, there was a 21 gun salute. My mom once told me many years ago that a military funeral was the saddest, now I knew what she was talking about.
My Uncle Charlie was the first one I knew in my family to get cable, the kind that only had two channels and he had a remote with his TV. It was a box with buttons for the different channels and a long cable that hooked into the back of his TV.
My Uncle Charlie was a hard-working man who loved his family, not just his immediate but also his extended family. He is very much missed in our family.
Rest in peace Uncle Charlie!
My Genealogy Obsession (c) 2009-2016 