March 28, 1942 – March 8, 2026
Charles “Chuck” Edward Taylor, 83, of Ventura, passed away unexpectedly on March 8, 2026, in Ventura, Iowa.
A visitation will be held from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 12, 2026, at Zion Lutheran Church, 112 N. 4th St., Clear Lake, Iowa. Visitation will continue one hour prior to the service on Friday, March 13, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. A funeral service will follow at 10:30 a.m. at the church with Lay Minister Al Berge and Chaplain David Callison officiating. Burial will take place at Memorial Park Cemetery following the service.
In lieu of flowers, please direct memorials to the Ventura Fire Department and Zion Lutheran Church.
Chuck was born March 28, 1942, in Forest City, Iowa, the son of Carroll and Helga (Bartleson) Taylor. He attended Forest City schools and graduated in 1960. During his school years, he played football and always held fond memories of his classmates and time growing up there.
Following graduation, Chuck enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1960. He served three years overseas in Korea, Japan and one year in the states before returning home to Forest City.
After his military service, Chuck attended bricklayer school in Des Moines. He went on to work as a union bricklayer for many years, laying block and brick on buildings throughout the region until his retirement in 2002. He always enjoyed pointing out the buildings he had worked on and sharing those stories with his family.
On August 9, 1969, Chuck married Eileen Charlson at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Forest City, the same church where he had been baptized and confirmed. The couple moved to Clear Lake, and in 1976 they built a home in Ventura, where they raised their two children, Jonathan and Lindsay.
Chuck took great pride in attending his children’s activities. He especially enjoyed watching Jonathan play football and hockey and cheering on Lindsay at all her sporting events.
In 1977, Chuck joined the Ventura Fire Department. He served as a firefighter for many years before becoming the department’s secretary in 2015, continuing to support the department he cared deeply about.
Chuck was a life member of the Ventura Gun Club, where he enjoyed trap shooting. He was also a member of Zion Lutheran Church and the VFW in Clear Lake.
Summers often found Chuck attending tractor shows, where he liked admiring tractors, especially Farmall/International Harvester models. Having grown up on a farm, he always appreciated farm life. After retirement, he enjoyed helping his sister-in-law and brother-in-law during harvest by driving trucks.
Chuck also enjoyed blacksmithing and leatherwork. He was known for always owning and driving Ford trucks. Above all, he was a social person who loved visiting with family and friends.
Chuck is survived by his loving wife, Eileen; his son, Jonathan (Cathy) Taylor; and his daughter, Lindsay (Steve) Armstrong. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Julieta Taylor, Kinnick Armstrong, Carter Armstrong, and Emma Armstrong; step-grandchildren Amber Giordano and her son Thomas Olsen and Christopher Taylor and his daughter Lillian Taylor; his brother, Dennis Taylor; sister in law Sandy Taylor brothers- and sisters-in-law Jerry and Bonnie Charlson and David and LaVonne Peters; as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Barbara (Duane) Johnson; his brother, Kenneth Taylor; his sister-in-law, Julie Taylor; and his brother-in-law, Harlan Charlson, niece Carolyn Johnson and niece Nancy Nehring.
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