Charles Mcclure

Charles "Bud" Franklin McClure, Sr.,

Lived to 80 years and resided in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina since 2005 but was also a long time resident of Glen Burnie, Maryland. Died on Christmas Eve morning 12-24-09 in his daughter's home with his wife by his side. Kidney failure complications caused by a long battle with prostate cancer.
(Long battle with prostate cancer)
Born August 16, 1929 in Tarentum, Pennsylvania to Charles A. McClure & Lula Campbell McClure
He was an only child. He was in the air force and served during the Korean War, after his tour of duty he worked as an airplane mechanic for Trans World Airlines (TWA) until he retired.

EDUCATION
Graduated from Har-Brack High school in 1947 - Natrona Heights, PA
Sheppard Air force Base, Texas majored in Aircraft Mechanics, Pittsburg Institute of Aeronautics received diploma as a master airframe and power plant mechanic

AWARDS
Korean service medal with 3 Bronze stars, United Nations service medal, National defense service medal, and a Good conduct medal. He served with 506th periodic Maint. Sq. (SAC) at Dow Air Force Base, Bangor, Maine

HOBBIES AND INTERESTS
Football, Fishing, Airplanes
He enjoyed Fishing, flying (anything to do with airplanes) and Football.
Loved football - favorite team Ravens, had a ravens flag waving from his garage and a reserved parking sign for ravens fans only all the way to the end. Bruce remembers a good day of a pick up game of football in the front yard at their old home on Crain highway with all the family and Bud put a real hurting on a bunch of them.
In Severn, MD Bud was a member of Heritage Church of God.
His hobbies were taking care of his family, and fishing with the Wades Point Combine Fishing Club with his fishing partners Bob Pierson and Dave Christianson. He and his buddies attended a fishing tournament every September. He did win a fishing rod with this club once.

LIFE
He was a very private, humble person who never seemed to like any attention drawn to himself. He never wanted or expected any reward for himself for helping others. He was a very generous, giving person, often taking in his children's friends and making them feel like they were family members too. He was all about making other people feel welcome in his home, at times he provided food, clothing, shelter and even tried to help troubled teens get back on their feet and he never wanted anything back for it. He always had an open door for his family members even after they had left the nest.
People always view Peggy his wife, as the rock of the family, and she is, but even a rock needs a foundation to rest on and he was the foundation. Some people see the gorgeous bird in the tree but neglect to see the tree holding the bird... . Bud was that steady tree.
His care for his family came first and his own personal wishes came second.
One example of this is he finished out his final years in a place he wanted to enjoy with his wife (Myrtle Beach). His only regret was that he didn't get to the warmer climates sooner for them to enjoy together.

STORIES
Bud loved telling the story of how he met his wife and how much of a knockout she was in her high heels and her arms covered in bracelets. Just this past Thanksgiving he was still telling the story of what a knockout she was in those bracelets and heels and how they met at the Dugout.
He would joke with his son Bruce about how he and his wife Bonnie would always show up right as dinner was being served, "Here we go again, you must of smelled the food" he would say.
Charlie's Memories (son)
Charlie remembers being a little boy, his dad would work the third shift and wouldn't get home till 6am, so his sleep time was from 6am until dinnertime. Charlie remembers his mother asking him to wake up his dad for dinner and he would tickle his dad's very sensitive feet to wake him up and he was so ticklish that he would jump up and that is how he would wake up. Another memory for Charlie as a little boy being carried up on his dad's big shoulders and how big and tall he seemed to him and the feeling of security he gave.
Charlie visited his father the night before he passed away and he saw his father's familiar watch sitting on his nightstand, and it brought back memories through the years of seeing this same familiar scene, his father in bed with the watch on the nightstand. This reminded him of how he would sit in his father's lap stretching the watchband, playfully snapping his father's arm. It reminded Charlie how secure he made him feel as a little boy. Seeing that watch sitting on that nightstand like that is just like it was 30 some- odd years ago and things still haven't changed; how he is still providing Charlie with that same sense of security even now.
Kim's memories (daughter)
Dad became my dad when I was very little, maybe 4 or 5 years old.
One of my first memories was when he came to visit my mother when they were first dating and it was late. My mother said I had to go to bed. I did not want to go and was trying everything to stay up. After I was in my bedroom I kept hollering out "Mr. Bud, Mr. Bud" and he would not answer me. Then I would ask my mother, could I get up and she would say no. So I started again with "Mr. Bud, Mr. Bud" and he finally said, "what Kim?" and I replied, "Did you know my mother has false teeth?" No response. So I said, "Mr. Bud, did you hear me? My mother has false teeth". There was nothing, then they both started laughing and my mother hollered and said I still couldn't get up.
I remember Dad picking me and my friends up every Saturday after gymnastics at Corkran Jr. High. and driving us every time we needed a ride anywhere. We would all pile into his big car (sometimes 5 or 6 girls) and he would take us where we needed to go.
I remember going fishing in Florida (just him and I) and getting our bait from "Dirty Gerties" and night fishing and me chumming the water up so bad we would only catch catfish or start getting sharks and stingrays on our lines. And Dad would say, "you know you do this every time" as a shark went under the bridge and the other fishermen were complaining of no "biting or lines breaking from the other fish" and Dad would say, "don't say how you've 'gutted' everything and thrown it in the water". And I would be laughing as I threw some more "chum" in.

HE IS SURVIVED BY:
His wife of 44 years, Peggy Vinson McClure (Myrtle Beach, SC), children: Karen Zindorf (Arnold, MD), Michael De Vincent (Myrtle Beach, SC), Bruce De Vincent (Pasadena, MD), Kim Carter (Conway, SC), and Charles Franklin McClure, Jr. (Pasadena, MD).
Bud has 11 grandchildren, 7 great grandchildren, and 1 great-great grandchild.