The Life of Charles C Hargis
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM on Monday, May 15, 2006 at Grace Presbyterian Church. "C.C." Charlie Hargis passed away at 2:47 AM May 12, 2006 at his daughter''s home surrounded by family. His life as a community luminary and industry pioneer continued to benefit all through his last days. Interment will be at Lafayette Memorial Park Cemetery. The Reverend John Wamsley, Pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church will preside over the funeral services. Brian Steele and John Turner, soloists, accompanied on the organ by Geraldine Hubbell, will sing for the services, "Eternal Life", "A Hymn of Promise", "The Lord''s Prayer" and "For All The Saints". The Congregational Hymns will be "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" and "Onward, Christian Soldiers". Survivors include his daughter Janice (Jan) Hargis Hamilton of Lafayette, three grandchildren, Carol Hamilton Hunt and her husband, Tim of Kingwood, TX, Mark Edward Hamilton and his wife, Michelle Cole Hamilton of Fort Worth, TX, and Mary Beth Hamilton Carrier and her husband, Lee of Lafayette and five great grandchildren, Rebecca Elaine (Becky), Samuel Charles (Sam) and Laura Elizabeth Hunt, all of Kingwood, TX, Ian Edward Hamilton of Fort Worth, TX, and Hamilton Miles Carrier of Lafayette. Charlie was dearly loved and cared for by Gwendolyn and Robert Alexander and Lester Degeyter in the last several years of his life. He was preceded in death by his loving wife, Elma Devall Hargis; grandson Charles Stanley Hamilton, his parents James Seward and Sophie Bentley Hargis, his 11 brothers Lawrence Henderson, Calvin Henry, Thomas Seward, Irvin Norman, James Ersel, William Morse, Benjamin Wallace, John Houston, Allen Jackson, Rollin Morris, and Joseph Augustus his three sisters, Margret, Ruby Elizabeth, and Bertha Lillian Hargis and a son-in-law, Charles E. Hamilton, M.D.A native of Texarkana, Texas, Charlie settled in Lafayette in 1955 after many years of managing the construction and operations of numerous power generation plants and facilities across the Gulf South. His career in Lafayette included the management of the construction of the Curtis A Rodemacher power station, later returning to manage the original Utilities System and subsequently being named as the first Director of LUS. During his tenure as Director of LUS through 1975, serving under Mayors J. Alfred Mouton, J. Rayburn Bertrand and Kenny F. Bowen, Charlie and his team positioned the System as a model public utilities system in financial, administrative and technical areas. It was under his leadership that LUS established the first underground power distribution installations and saw triple digit growth in revenues. Among other public utilities, the Department of Water and Power for the City of Los Angeles even sought his expertise in establishing and developing a more efficient and economic utilities system in 1967. The fuel shortages in the early 1970''s prompted him to testify before United States Department of the Interior in favor of proposed offshore leasing for energy exploration, supporting the growth of the Utilities and Lafayette as the hub of the petroleum industry that is today. As a lifetime civil servant, Charlie was quoted as saying, "Power failures are not conducive to good public relations", a testament to his enthusiasm for providing the best possible services to the people of Lafayette.Charlie also participated in and led many local and national civic organizations and was honored with numerous accolades for his achievements. During the 1960s, Charlie served in leadership positions in the Lafayette Kiwanis Club including treasurer, vice president, and president. He was named as an honorary member of the Lafayette Police Jury in 1969. He served on various pivotal committees in the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce and was an executive board member of the Louisiana Municipal Association. He was the chairman of the Lafayette chapter of the IEEE in the early 1970s and was awarded their Centurion award in 1984, when his years of IEEE membership and his age equaled 100 years. The IEEE honored Charlie with their Pioneer award in 2001, recognizing his outstanding achievements in the electrical and public power industry. As a dedicated member of the American Public Power Association, Charlie served on the board of directors from 1966 to 1972 and either chaired or served on most of its leadership and planning committees. The APPA honored Charlie with their highest award, the Harold Kramer Service Award for contributing to the growth and development of the APPA in 1970. This prompted then Lafayette Mayor J. Rayburn Bertrand to proclaim June 16, 1970 as Charlie Hargis Day in the City of Lafayette. The APPA also recognized his leadership of the Lafayette Utilities System with the first place Safety award in 1970. Charlie also supported and shared with many other local organizations that sought his experience and leadership capabilities over the years, including the Evangeline area Boy Scout Council, the University Of Louisiana College Of Engineering, the UL Alumni Association, the National Republican Party and the L.J.Alleman Center. As a founding member of Grace Presbyterian Church, Charlie served in many leadership roles over the years. He often commented that his most rewarding stewardship roles within the Church were those associated with facility growth and maintenance. He was honored to be the only Elder Emeritus at Grace Church. Charlie was most recently honored by the Lafayette Consolidated Government when they named their newest plant as the Hargis-Hebert Electrical Generating Station. He was most pleased to share this honor with his dear friend and colleague Roy P. Hebert.The family requests that visiting hours be observed at Grace Presbyterian Church from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM on Sunday, May 14th and from 8:00 AM until time of services on Monday May 15th .The family wishes to thank Jon LeLeux, M.D., Ken Spiller, M.D, Morris Hoffpauir, M.D., Lester Ducote, M.D. Barry Bohn, M.D., Bill Bernard, M.D. Michael Barry, D.D.S., the staff of 4 East at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Hospice of Acadiana and, their nurses and staff for their excellent care and unwavering support. Pallbearers will be Buck Ballard, Randy David, John Guidry, Terry Huval, Bill Kloss, Marc Mouton, Randyll Ratcliff, and Ray Stroup.Honorary pallbearers will be Roscoe B. Jones, Bob Hamm, Art Anderson, "Jersey" Jim Hargis, The Honorable Kaliste J. Saloom Jr, The Honorable Joey Durel, Mac Hayes, Irving Manuel, Mike Mitchell, Pete Lavergne, Ron Gomez, Don Langford, M.D., Beau Burch, M.D., J.C. Devall, Doug Gardner, Andy Schmitz, Ray Montgomery, Dud Lastrapes, Gloria Knox, The Deacons and Elders of Grace Church, LUS Administration, staff, and employees past and present.At the request of Mr. Hargis, memorial donations may be made in lieu of flowers to Grace Presbyterian Church, 518 Roselawn Blvd., Lafayette, Louisiana 70503. Many strive to live long and full lives. Charlie achieved just that and his legacy will be one of respect for others and service to all. Martin & Castille Funeral Home, Inc. of Lafayette has been chosen to help with the arrangements.337-234-2311.
