ROCKPORT — Charles Morgan Foote, Jr., 91, passed away on April 26, 2023 after a brief period of declining health. His wife, Joan, and children, Charlene, Cindy and Charlie, were privileged to be able to honor his wishes by bringing him out of the hospital and into hospice care at home. They lovingly attended to him until he was ready to leave this world and move on to his next adventure.

Charlie had an amazing life. He was born in Rockland, Maine, September 7, 1931, the only child of Charles Morgan Foote, Sr. and Marian Estelle Fletcher Foote. He attended Rockland schools where he was a star athlete in high school and was the only 4 letter athlete his senior year. He was honored at the first annual Booster Club banquet honoring lettermen in June of 1949.

After graduating from Rockland High School, Charlie went on to the University of Maine in Orono. While there, he was a member of Phi Mu Delta fraternity and ROTC. He was also a member of the track team, earning the nickname of “Hoofer”. He also met the love of his life, Joan Murray Talbot, during this time period. She was still in high school in Rockland and theirs was a love for the ages. In 1953, Charlie graduated from UMO, and Joan from Rockland High School. They were married on July 18 of that year.

It was off to the Army next, and his four years of service were spent at Ft. Benning, in Georgia, and Ft. Dix, in New Jersey. He became a father of two daughters while at Ft. Dix and in 1957 the young family moved back to
Rockland. His son was born in 1958 and they raised their family in the newly formed Pen Bay Acres neighborhood. During this time in his life, he was a math and science teacher at Rockland District High School, where he enjoyed chaperoning school trips to Washington, D.C. a few times.

Charlie had his private pilot license and loved spending time in the air. His family especially loved the times when he flew them to Florida for April vacation week. He and Joan spent many hours in their plane, sight-seeing and flying to visit family and friends.

An avid boater for most of his life, Charlie loved being on the water. He enjoyed spending summers at the family’s cottage on Damariscotta Lake in Jefferson. There he taught his children to water-ski, fish, sail and handle power boats. In the winters, he would take his family skiing all over the state of Maine and ice fishing and  snowmobiling at Damariscotta Lake.

Charlie and Joan took the family on a cross-country trip in their motorhome in the summer of 1969. That trip planted a seed in all of the kids, who to this day enjoy traveling to see new places.

In 1973, Charlie and Joan moved into their dream home in Rockport, overlooking Glen Cove and Penobscot Bay.

They also hosted Finnish foreign-exchange student, Sirkka Immonen, during the 1973/74 school year. The family traveled to Finland to visit Sirkka and her family after she returned home.

At the end of the school year in 1976, Charlie retired from teaching. He and Joan spent many years boating around Penobscot Bay and one year even piloted their 45 ft. power boat to Florida and back. They were very active in the local Coast Guard Auxiliary flotilla & taught boating skills for many years. They absolutely loved spending time on their boat on the bay. They have owned & operated Lermond Cove Marina in Rockland for many years.

Motorcycling was another activity Charlie enjoyed. He took many a ride with Joan as his passenger. They traveled all around the northeast and even most of the way across the country and back on a Honda Goldwing. He joked, after the cross-country trip, that when they crossed the Rockies, they had been higher on their motorcycle than they had in their airplane.

As mentioned earlier, another interest of his was spending time snowmobiling with friends and family. Many winter weekends were spent on a snowmobile, initially in the Midcoast area, but eventually in the Moosehead Lake region. He was a long-time member of the Goose River Snowmobile Club and the Moosehead Riders Snowmobile Club. In 1992, he and  Joan purchased a log cabin style home in Lily Bay TWP and it became affectionately known as The Foote Rest. He thoroughly enjoyed snowmobiling from there with family and friends and was still operating a snow-machine until his late eighties. Many wonderful memories were made there.

Charlie was a member of many organizations over his lifetime. Some of those include Boy Scouts of America, Sea Bees, ROTC, Jaycees, Kiwanis, Masons, AOPA and the Rockport Boat Club.

Both Charlie and Joan enjoyed dining out in various local establishments, most especially for breakfast, but sometimes dinner as well. They developed great relationships with the servers at those places they frequented.

The family wishes to thank those folks who tended to them so well. They also wish to thank the doctors, nurses and hospice workers for their kindness and compassion during his final days.

Pre-deceased by his parents and his sister-in-law, Marion Talbot Lilley, Charles is survived by his beloved wife of almost 70 years, Joan, of Rockport; daughter Charlene Fitch and husband, David, of North Conway, New Hampshire, and grandson William Smith of Glen, New Hampshire; daughter Cynthia (Cindy) Schaub and her partner, John Bradbury, of Millinocket, and grandsons Steven Schaub of North Berwick and Gregory Schaub of Hermon; son, Charles M. Foote, III and his partner, Kimberly Schroeter, of Rockport, and grandchildren Andrea Foote of Colchester, Vermont, Morgan (Charles IV) Foote of Falmouth and William Foote of Portland; great-grandchildren Levi and Lily Schaub of Hermon; Nash, Peyton and Crew Foote of Falmouth; and Braelynn Schaub of North Berwick; as well as numerous cousins.

At Charlie’s request, there will be no visitation hours or funeral. The family will hold a private celebration of his life at a later date. Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, Rockland.

To share a memory or story with Charlie’s family, please visit their online Book of Memories at www.bchfh.com.

Those who wish may make memorial donations to: University of Maine Foundation, Buchanan Alumni House, Two Alumni Place, Orono, ME 04469-5792 or at umaine.edu/give.