Wednesday, June 1, 2016
My family was very fortunate to buy the house next door to Charles and Betty Whinna in Wilmington, NC. Charles was one of the most genuinely nice people I have ever met, an extremely kind and helpful neighbor, and a good friend who stayed in contact even after leaving Wilmington. He called occasionally from Hillsborough to talk about his family, his visits to Bojangles, and the people who thought he looked much younger than his years—indeed he did! He would tell me which one of his grandchildren was currently driving my ex-Saturn. He always asked how my family was doing, how things were going in the old neighborhood, and whether I had seen Tim the mailman (the two used to have lengthy investment discussions beside the mailbox).
I'll miss Charles's emails—the jokes, the family photos, the nature pictures, helpful hints, the links to Susan Boyle singing ...
In addition to our friendship, I appreciated his rather grandfatherly involvement in the life of my son John, whose actual grandfathers lived in Texas. Charles and Betty attended John's special events, including piano recitals and graduation ceremonies. They once kept John overnight when my husband and I attended a conference. They often invited us over to watch holiday fireworks on their big-screen TV.
While the Whinnas lived next door, I enjoyed engaging in conversation with Charles, sometimes while he was working on "his" rose bushes that were planted in our yard before we bought our house. Eventually Charles removed those old rose bushes that were no longer producing well. Then, when the Whinnas sold their house, we learned that some of the blueberry bushes that Charles planted and lovingly tended also were on our property. I enjoy remembering that when our son graduated from elementary school, Charles kindly let John choose one of those blueberry bushes as John's very own. We have the honor of maintaining those beloved bushes—and I'll miss having Charles call each year in the spring to remind us to start the vinegar treatments and again in the summer to learn how the plants are producing.
I'm so glad that Charles was part of my life for the past 21 years, and my memories of him will always bring a smile to my face. He was indeed a special person!
With great fondness,
Debra Berman
