Charles "Charlie" Fahl

Dec 16, 1939 -

Aug 15, 2020

Longtime Alaska resident Charles "Charlie" B. Fahl passed peacefully away on Aug. 15, 2020, with his wife at his side.

He was born in New York on Dec. 16, 1939, to James and Dorothy Fahl. They moved to Rockville, Md., shortly thereafter, where Charlie grew up with his older sister Pat and his younger sisters, Margaret and Cindy.

Charlie graduated from high school in Rockville and received a B.S. in earth sciences from Antioch College in Ohio. In 1964, right after the great Alaska earthquake, Charlie and a friend drove to Alaska, where Charlie found a job on the DEW line. While there, he met his first wife, Patricia Killbear. They lived in Fairbanks where he attended UAF and received his M.S. and Ph.D. in geophysics (meteorology). In 1973, they moved to Anchorage where they raised their sons, James and Chuck, until Pat died in 1994.

Charlie's love was meteorology. Briefly he was a television weatherman in both Anchorage and Fairbanks. He worked for 10 years at Dames and Moore as an environmental consultant and then in 1983, he joined the faculty of the environmental science department at APU. In 1994, he became the academic dean until he retired in 2003. Three years later, he became a trustee for APU.

Charlie was passionate about cross-country skiing and contributed much at both the junior level and at APU. He was active at St. Mary's s Episcopal Church serving as junior warden, treasurer and several times participating in the diocese convention. Once retired, he enthusiastically spent countless hours on many golf courses.

Charlie met Ruth, his second wife, on a blueberry picking outing at Arctic Valley, having been invited by her son Richard Ragle. They have enjoyed skiing, hiking, backpacking, birding and traveling together.

Charlie was a loving husband and a wonderful father and grandfather. He loved Alaska and spent as much time as he could hiking its beautiful mountains. Hiking the Chilkoot Trail and climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with good friends were two of his most memorable trips.

There will be a small family memorial service on Sept. 4, 2020, with Rev. Katherine Hunt officiating. Conditions permitting, an open memorial service will be held sometime in August 2021. Ashes will be scattered in the Chugach Range.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to F.I.S.H.; APU Nordic Ski Center, 4101 University Dr.; or the Alzheimer's Association, Alaska Chapter, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, D.C. 20090.

He is survived by his wife, Ruth; sons, James Fahl (Jennifer) and Chuck Fahl (Jen); sisters, Patricia and Cindy (Jack); grandchildren, Avery, Zane and August; and many nieces and nephews.