Charles Reese III Obituary

Charles Henry Reese III was born on All Saints’ Day, November 1, 1939, in Nashville, Tennessee to Charles Henry Reese, Jr. and Dorothy Juanita Young Reese. He was the second of three children. He had an older sister, Dorothy Juanita “Dotty” Reese Hawkins, and his best friend throughout his entire life was his brother, George Milton Reese (1941-2021).

From the time he was a boy, he worked at his father’s heating and air and sheet metal shop, which was actually the company his grandfather, Charles Henry Reese, Sr., had started back in 1916 in downtown Nashville.

After his own father, who had become owner and president of C.H. Reese & Sons, died young from cancer in 1967, Charlie was to take his role in the family business, but eventually found that being the boss of so many family members was not what he wanted to do with his life. He moved his family to Jackson, Tennessee, where he worked for another company prior to convincing his brother, George, to move there as well. He founded Reese Supply, Inc., a wholesale heating, air conditioning, gutter, and sheet metal supply, in 1975 with George. Charlie was president and George was vice-president of Reese Supply until they retired in May 1997.

Charlie and his siblings attended parochial schools. Charlie and George were both graduates of Father Ryan High School in Nashville, in 1957 and 1959, respectively. Charlie first attended Vanderbilt University in 1958, then transferred to Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro.

There he met Carolyn Nell Christnacht of Chattanooga at a Catholic Youth Organization dance. He said she was the prettiest girl he had ever seen. They were married on July 1, 1961, at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church in Chattanooga. Charlie graduated with a B.S. in Accounting in May 1962 from MTSU, the month after their first daughter was born. Charlie and Carolyn traveled the world together, had a lot of good times, and raised their three daughters, Catherine Caroline, Laura Elizabeth, and Juliet Anne.

Charlie helped his father build a cabin up on the Tennessee River as a boy and enjoyed many weekends fishing there from then on. Fishing was one of his favorite things to do. He loved being outdoors, which he called “communing with Nature.” He loved a variety of music, from Irish standards to jazz to country to, of course, rock ‘n’ roll. Other interests and hobbies included golf and watching sports, especially the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, and, earlier than that, Notre Dame football. He was a communicant of St. Mary’s Catholic Church and a member of the Knights of Columbus.

The force of Charlie’s personality is hard to explain. He was a dominant character. He was full of life and very funny. He was smart and extremely strong-willed; he was loud and loved to tell a joke or spin a yarn. You knew when he walked into the room. He was very social. He demanded a lot of himself and others. He was temperamental and extremely particular. He was a born leader who took charge and directed other people. He was really a Character in the best sense of that word.

Charlie was preceded in death by his parents, both of his siblings, and his son-in-law and partner in crime, Paul Cearley. Survivors include his wife of 64 years, Carolyn Christnacht Reese; his daughters Cathy Reese of Jonesboro, Arkansas, Laura Reese Cearley of Jackson, and Julie Reese of Jackson; his granddaughters Selah Winn and Lilah McGregor, both of Jonesboro; and his nephew Ron Hawkins, Jr. (Angela) of Brentwood, Tennessee. Other survivors, in no particular order, include his “little buddy,” the cat Arthur Joseph Reese; his many friends and acquaintances everywhere; and the large, extended Reese family in the Nashville area.

SERVICE: Family and friends will have a time of remembrance on Saturday, July 19, 2025, beginning at 10:00 a.m. followed by the service in the Chapel of Arrington Funeral Directors at 12:00 p.m. with Deacon Bill Winston of St. Mary's Catholic Church officiating. A private burial will follow at Ridgecrest Cemetery.

Honorary pallbearers will be Harry Boosey, Jerry Ferguson, Jerry Lucas, Bob Rogers and the class of 1957 from Father Ryan High School.

To commemorate Charlie, please pop a cold one and go commune with nature, preferably while enjoying your favorite Irish tunes. Have a laugh and tell a story. Do a little loud singing and humming. Pet the cat and love your family. And remember, as he often said,

Tempus fugit or Time Flies

To further celebrate and honor his memory, please consider donating to the St. Mary's Catholic Church Building Fund, 1665 Highway 45 Bypass, Jackson, TN 38305, St. Mary's School, 1665 Highway 45 Bypass, Jackson, TN 38305, an animal charity, or kindness of your choice.

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