Charles Leslie Young
May 18, 1939 -
Dec 28, 2023
Charles "Chuck" Leslie Young, age 84, passed away on Dec. 28, 2023, in Anchorage, Alaska. He was born in Dayton, Ohio, on May 18, 1939, to Jesse and Aurilla Young, and the brother of Patricia Young Simon, his beloved sister.
Chuck heard the call to become a United Methodist minister early in life. He gave his first homily when he was 6 years old during a school assembly at Allen School in Dayton - much to the mortification of his older sister. At 14, his preaching skills were recognized by the local United Methodist Conference and he began his life-long vocation as a United Methodist minister.
Chuck attended Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio, majoring in pre-theology, with minors in Greek and German. On the first day of Religion 101 class, he noticed a beautiful girl and in a very suave move, asked to borrow a quarter for coffee. She loaned him the money, thus beginning a romance that lasted 60-plus years - despite the fact she never got her quarter back. Chuck and Gerry Arleta Sexton fell in love and married on June 17, 1961, after both graduated from Ohio Wesleyan. Chuck then attended Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Ill. Chuck and Gerry welcomed their daughter Allison Anne in 1963, and their son Christopher George in 1965. Chuck completed his Master of Divinity in June 1966, and was appointed to Harlem United Methodist Church in Rockford, Ill. While at Harlem, Chuck became very interested in prison ministry; from 1969 to 1973 he served as the Director at Genesis House for Released Convicts in Rockford. In 1973, he was appointed to the four churches of the North Boone Parish in northern Illinois.
Chuck and Gerry's dream of living in Alaska came true in 1978, when Chuck was hired as the Campus Minister for the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). Chuck loved his work as campus minister – leading student worship services and student events on campus, and working with UAF faculty and staff. His third story office in Constitution Hall was marked by helium balloons flying out the office window. Chuck developed and taught a "Basic Bible" class. He organized two campus social action groups: A Time for Peace and Mustard Seed for those interested in peace and social justice. He also met with other student faith groups to learn from them and to encourage and support them as UAF students. He saw his ministry as a more than a call to Christianity – it was also a call to all those seeking discussions of faith and faith journeys, and more simply, as fellow humans on the same journey he was.
In 1995, he was appointed to the Sitka United Methodist Church. He and Gerry moved to Sitka and immediately bought the Arcos, the sailboat of their dreams. They loved their life in Sitka, becoming part of community life and making many friends. In 2001, Chuck retired from ministry. He and Gerry moved to Cooper Landing, Alaska – a place they loved since first visiting the area in 1979. Chuck and Gerry designed their dream home and loved life there. The dream home was also perfectly located so that Chuck had the opportunity to fish almost every day of the year - a lifelong dream - and Gerry had the opportunity to draw, paint, sew and read to her heart's content. Chuck and Gerry celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in June 2011 with friends and family from all over Alaska celebrating with them in Cooper Landing. In 2012, Chuck and Gerry moved to Chester Park in Anchorage. Gerry died on March 27, 2017, from Lewy Body dementia.
Chuck continued to live at Chester Park to be near family and friends. He met Lela Sanders there and they were married on June 10, 2018, at St. John United Methodist Church in Anchorage. Their honeymoon was a trip they both longed to take - a cruise through the Panama Canal. Chuck made sure that people knew they were on their honeymoon cruise and they were toasted and congratulated many times. Cruise highlights included stops in the Florida Keys and horse-drawn carriage rides through Charleston, S.C.'s historic neighborhoods.
After the honeymoon, Chuck and Lela settled into married life, continuing to live at Chester Park. They kept busy doing their favorite things: drives to see the fall color in Hatcher Pass and on the Kenai Peninsula, whale watching trips to Beluga Point, and visits to family and friends in Anchorage, Wasilla, Palmer, Eagle River, Indian, Cooper Landing and Soldotna. They were incredibly lucky to have a trailer site at the Sunrise Inn in Cooper Landing, courtesy of longtime friend Arden. They kept the trailer in Cooper Landing year-round so they could visit friends on the Kenai as well as simply being immersed in an area they both loved. One of their favorite things was to spend time with Lela's children and their family at the Elledge/Oakley family fish site on Cook Inlet.
Chuck leaves behind his wife, Lela Joye Young; children, Allison Young McLain and Christopher George Young; son-in-law, Barron McLain; daughter-in-law, Carla Young; and grandchildren, Theo McLain, Ellie Young and Roscoe Young. He is survived by his sister, Patricia Simon with husband George and their children David Michael, Karen and Susan, as well William and Debbie Lower. He is also survived by Lela's three sons, her daughter, their families, and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren: Jim and Diane Elledge, Ron and Linda Elledge, David and Pam Elledge, and Susan and Ray Oakley.
Allison McLain expresses deep gratitude to the Alaska United Methodist Conference ministers who attended Chuck's memorial service and those who participated online – thank you for honoring his dedication, his work and the friendship he had with each of you. Special thanks to St. John United Methodist staff who supported the memorial service. Your love and respect for Dad shone through in the grace and peace of his service. For those wishing to make donations in Chuck's memory, contributions may be made to Southern Poverty Law Center, https://support.splcenter.org; or Bread for the World, https://give.bread.org.
