USAF Msgt. Charles F. Bekker

U.S.A.F. Msgt. Charles F. Bekker, retired, 86 years old, passed away on Tuesday, April 10, 2018. He died peacefully in his sleep after several long years of illness.

Charles was originally from Guatemala and married his high school sweet heart Carmen in 1956. They were married 61 long years.

He is survived by his wife Carmen and his four sons; Karl, Gus, Walter, and John, and sister Carolina. He loved his beautiful grandkids; Isadora, Emily, Owen, and Arwen.

Charles loved his country and proudly enrolled in the U.S. Air Force in 1954 and became an U.S. citizen at the age of 23.

He forged many lifelong friendships throughout his military years that he never forgot. He worked his way up through the ranks to Master Sergeant and was deployed for a yearlong stint in Vietnam and service in Thailand during the 1960’s.

Charles retired in Mountain Home. He enjoyed his work with the Shoshonie-Paiute Tribes and worked many years at the Idaho Department of Labor.

Charles loved his community and volunteered time teaching Spanish and the English speakers of Mountain Home.

Over the years, Charles earned various advanced degrees form Associate of Arts to Bachelor of Arts, as well as a Bachelor of Science degree and eventually earning his Masters of Arts in Psychology.

He was a proud member in various clubs, and associations over his life time. Most notably, he served as Commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars from 1994-1997. He was a lifetime member of the American Legion and never let a year go by without flying the U.S. flag on his porch at every military honor day.

Personally, Charles was a gifted artist, an avid stamp collector, a skilled chess player with a poker face, and an aspiring magician. He was a skilled swimmer in his youth earning awards for swimming prowess while in the U.S.A.F. Charles like big band music and loved to dance to the sounds of Glen Miller.

A graveside inurnment with military honors will be held at 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 19, 2018, at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery, in Boise. Cremation was under the care of Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel.