Charles Way, Jr.

Charles Edward Way, Jr. 84 of Bloomington, Nebraska, died Wednesday, November 16, 2016, at his home . A celebration of life service will be at 10:30 a.m., Friday, November 18, 2016, at the Hutchins Funeral Home, Franklin, Nebraska, with Pastor Bill Stearns officiating. Burial will be at Naponee Cemetery, Naponee, Nebraska, with military honors by Nebraska Army National Guard Honor Guard , American Legion Post No. 145, Bloomington, Nebraska, and American Legion Post No. 364, Naponee, Nebraska. Visitation will be from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Thursday, November 17, 2016, at the Hutchins Funeral Home. On-line condolences can be left at www.hutchinsfh.com . Memorial donations for Charles Edward Way, Jr., can be made to the charity of the donor's choice. Charles was born January 8, 1932, at his parents' home near Covington, Oklahoma. He was the younger of two children born to Charles Edward and Ethel Mary (Wells) Way. He attended Elmdale Country School, Covington High School and the Bible Baptist Church of Covington. In 1952, he was working as a truck driver for Benny Holding Custom Harvesting, Covington, Oklahoma, when he was drafted into the Army and sent to Camp Roberts, California for basic training. After basic, he sailed to Japan for four weeks of telephone communications training at Eta Jama Special School, 8098th Army Unit and from there to Korea. He served with Headquarters and Headquarter Company, 38th Infantry, 2nd Division as a field wireman from 1952 - 1954 and was on the battlefield the day cease fire was declared. Charles received the Korean service medal with two Bronze Stars, United Nations Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, and Republic of Korea Presidential Citation. He was a member of American Legion Post 145, Bloomington. Charles inherited his stocky build from his great-grandfather Sylvester "Sidney" Way and his brothers - Cyrus "Munson" Way, Alexander "Wesley" Way and Philo Philander Way, who settled homesteads near Wayne, Republic County, Kansas, after the Civil War. Sylvester "Sidney" Way was the first burial in Union Cemetery on the Cyrus "Munson" Way homestead, where his brothers and their descendants are also buried. Their ancestors were George Way 1614-1650 and Elizabeth (Smith) Way 1630 - 1713, emigrants from England to Say brook, Connecticut. They lived in Providence, Rhode Island, and New London, Connecticut. Charles inherited curly hair from his great-grandparents John and Mary (Buryanek) Richecky, emigrants from Bohemia, Czechoslovakia. They settled in 1880 near Cuba, Republic County, Kansas and are buried in the Tabor Cemetery. Charles worked as a roughneck in the derricks of oil well drilling rigs in Oklahoma, Southern Kansas, Arkansas, and in the Nebraska panhandle, near Scotts Bluff. He was a chauffeur for the Air Force Officers at Vance Air Force Base, Enid, Oklahoma, and with the Garfield County Oklahoma Road Department. He operated engines to generate electricity for the City of Franklin, Nebraska, until 1977, when a heart attack forced his retirement. In 1957, he bought a house in the country to be moved to the town of Covington, Oklahoma. The plan was for his fiancées grandfather, Charles Meise, a Covington house mover, to move the house, but when the time came he was in the hospital and insisted Charles use his equipment and move his own house, which he did. June 2, 1958, he married Mamie Rebecca Meise, the daughter of Forrest and Anna (Chapman) Meise, at the home of Reverend W.B. and Jessie Gilliland, Covington, Oklahoma. They became parents of two sons - Benny Mack Way and Randy Edward Way. They moved to Naponee, Nebraska in 1968, Covington, Oklahoma in 1979, and to Bloomington, Nebraska in 2012. Charles was a NASCAR fan. He restored two model T coupes and a Model A sedan. He enjoyed camping, fishing and making latch hook rugs. He was preceded in death by his parents; brother - Sonny Way; son- Randy Way; and brother-in-law - Billy Meise. Survivors are his widow - Mamie of 58 years; son - Benny Way of Orleans, Nebraska; one granddaughter - Rebecca Lynn and husband, Brody Schmidt; and two great-granddaughters - Lyla Sue and Kelsey Lynn Schmidt of Nash Oklahoma; brother and sister-in-law - Ramon and Thelma Garcia, Charles and Lynda Zade of Bloomington, Nebraska; two nephews - Harvey Melton of Holdrege, Nebraska, and Dustin Zade of Franklin, Nebraska; three nieces - Anna Hunter, Republican City, Nebraska, Sandra Horne, Aurora, Colorado and Shannon Zade, Hastings, Nebraska.