Charles E. Bechtel

Charles E. Bechtel, 85, died Sunday, September 29, 2019, at UPMC Pinnacle Hanover Hospital.  He was the husband of Mariam I. Bechtel, his wife of 53 years.

Charles was born March 3, 1934, in Merchantville, NJ, the son of the late John B. and Frances (Ramsburg) Bechtel.

Charles was a member of Paradise “Holtzschwamm” Lutheran Church in Thomasville, and served in the U.S. Navy where he was promoted to the rank of Commander.  He was a graduate of East Berlin High School, serving as class president, and was very active in organizing class reunions, attended Elizabethtown College, then obtained his under graduate and master’s degree in business administration, from George Washington University where he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa.  Charles was employed by Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone, and later Verizon, and along with his wife, owned and operated the Lease-Bechtel Mansion Inn Bed and Breakfast for 16 years.  He was a devoted husband and loving father, a life-member of the East Berlin Historical Preservation Society, and enjoyed traveling, collecting antiques, gardening and reading.

In addition to his wife Mariam, Charles is survived by two daughters, Elizabeth B. Ford and her husband Col. Dom Ford of Fairfax, VA, and Charlotte B. Bomar and her husband Shane Bomar of Virginia Beach, VA, two grandchildren, Jacqueline M. Ford and Ryon C. Ford, and a brother, Mayo W. “Bill” Bechtel of East Berlin.

Funeral services will be held on Friday, October 4, 2019, at 10 AM, at Paradise “Holtzschwamm” Lutheran Church, 3241 Church Rd, Thomasville, with Rev. Douglas Johnson officiating.  Burial will be in Mummert’s Church Cemetery in Abbottstown.  There will be no viewing.  Memorial contributions may be made to the East Berlin Historical Preservation Society, or to the East Berlin Community Library.  Feiser Funeral Home, Inc, 306 Harrisburg St, East Berlin, is in charge of arrangements.  Memories may be shared at www.feiserfuneralhome.com.

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