Charles Bless, Sr.

Charles Eshelman Bless, Sr., age 99, of Chambersburg, PA, passed away on Saturday, October 29, 2016, at Providence Place of Dover, Dover, PA. Born January 19, 1917, in Elizabethtown, PA, he was the son of the late Charles S. and Bertha W. Eshelman Bless.

A member of King Street United Brethren Church for over 70 years, he was a member of the Burton’s Men’s Sunday School Class. A U.S. Marine, Mr. Bless served honorably during WWII. Charles worked at Sears, Chambersburg Auto Parts, supplied a vending machine, worked a cookie route, sold Mason Shoes, and was a taxi driver in Chambersburg in the 1960’S. Charles retired as a salesman for Cumberland Valley Revue, after 26 years. Mr. Bless was also a member of the Patriot Federal Credit Union committee. Charles had a legacy of blessing others; he served as a greeter at the church for nearly 35 years, retiring in 2013. He enjoyed golfing and working in his garden.

Surviving are three children, Robert Bless (wife Kathy) of Fayetteville, PA, Gary D. Bless of California, and Janet Doyle (husband Glenn) of Newburg, PA; ten grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren. In addition to his parents, Charles was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Ruth Elizabeth Foust Bless, on September 15, 2003, a son, Charles E. Bless, Jr., and four siblings, Mary, Paul, Edward, and Ruth Delores.

Funeral services will be held in his honor on Monday, November 7, 2016, at 11:30 AM in the Chapel of Thomas L Geisel Funeral Home and Cremation Center, 333 Falling Spring Rd., Chambersburg, PA, where Rev. Paul B. Baker and Rev. Lester F. Stine will officiate. The family will receive friends on Sunday, November 6, 2016, from 6-8 PM and one hour prior to the service in the funeral home. Entombment will follow the service in Parklawns Memorial Gardens, where member of the Charles Nitterhouse Post 1599 Honor Guard will provide military honors. In lieu of flowers, Charles suggests memorial contributions to Central PA Youth Ministries, c/o Mitchell Bless, P.O. Box 189, Shamokin Dam, PA 17876 or to the Burton’s Men’s Sunday School Class at King Street Church, 162 East King St., Chambersburg, PA 17201.