Seems like everybody knew Charles Gordon Luton. There is the story about the huge crowd in St. Peter’s Square: one person turned to another and asked, “Do you know who that is?” The other guy replied, “I don’t know who the guy in the beanie is, but the other one is Chuck Luton.” When news of Chuck’s death reached his home community on Hartstine Island, the flag was lowered to half-mast, one indication of how widely and deeply Chuck connected with those around him. These connections span six decades and reach around the world. The world is definite­ly a better place because of Chuck.

Chuck’s early connections were Mid­western, in southern Illinois. His dad drilled water wells, and Chuck, from the beginning, was actively engaged in life. He developed a healthy curiosity about how things (and people) worked. Chuck could build or repair almost anything. Even 60 years later, Chuck was often busy in his well-outfitted workshop at home. Part of what enabled Chuck to con­nect with people so well was his outgoing and affable personality. His sense of humor was sometimes irreverent, but it put people at ease. More important, Chuck clearly cared about other people. For so many of us, he was a true, dependable friend.

West Point was a growth experience for Chuck. His was the last class to be assigned to cadet companies by height. After Beast Barracks, he was assigned to Company A-2, the shortest folks in the second regiment. But in his Yearling year, he was reassigned to Company C-2, a clear indication of how much he had grown. He was athletic. Although not excelling at any particular sport, he did well at anything he undertook.

Upon graduation in 1960, Chuck launched his Army career with enthusiasm, starting with Ranger and Airborne training.

With the Cold War heating up in Southeast Asia, President Kennedy added counter-in­surgency to the mission of Special Forces. This new mission resulted in a rapid expan­sion of Special Forces and a call for new vol­unteers, including second lieutenants for the first time. Chuck volunteered while he was at the Field Artillery School and reported to Ft. Bragg after completing the basic course. Unfortunately, the Special Forces cadre did not look kindly on inexperienced second lieu­tenants. Consequently, Chuck and some of his classmates were shipped off to the Army language school in Monterey, CA, until they ripened into more acceptable first lieutenants.

This proved to be a career-defining move. Chuck studied the Thai language and became a foreign area specialist after a branch transfer to the Ordnance Corps and an advisory tour with Military Assistance Command, Viet Nam, in 1965–66.

The foreign area training program includ­ed graduate studies, language training, and in­country training, followed by repetitive tours in the country or in other assignments focus­ing on the country of interest. This program provided the Army with a small cadre of area specialists in countries where the United States had important interests and provided a criti­cal measure of continuity in these countries where there was otherwise little institutional memory due to U.S. troop rotation every few years. While in Monterey, Chuck met and married Arlene.

In 1967, Chuck earned his master’s de­gree in Asian studies from the University of Hawaii. Subsequently, while posted to the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, he spent a year traveling and studying in Southeast Asia be­fore being assigned as senior advisor to the Royal Thai Army Ammunition Plant. As the conflict in Southeast Asia escalated, Chuck was put in charge of “Peppergrinder,” a large supply depot and transportation network in northern Thailand that supported operations in Laos and Cambodia. Altogether, Chuck lived in Thailand for more than five years, es­tablishing a broad array of interpersonal con­nections at every level, the key to getting the job done in difficult times.

Following his tours in Southeast Asia and the Command and General Staff College, Chuck was assigned to the Army Staff, where he handled foreign liaison functions from 1972 to 1975. Chuck then returned overseas to Iran for another tour with the Military Assistance Advisory Group during 1975–77, working on ordnance special projects. In 1977, he returned to Illinois to teach military science at Knox College until 1980. Chuck’s practical expertise in manufacturing ordnance then led to a MAAG assignment in Egypt. There, he was the project manager, overseeing contractors installing tank and small arms am­munition production lines.

In 1981, Chuck retired from the Army and joined the General Defense Corporation, establishing their office in Washington, DC, and serving as director of Asia-Pacific opera­tions. In the latter position, Chuck was based in Hong Kong, where he had a beautiful resi­dence on Victoria Heights and a Rolls Royce to travel the British territory in appropriate style. Among many deals he brokered was the initial sale of helicopters to China. This market closed following the Tiananmen Square incident, however, and subsequent trade sanctions.

In 1989, Chuck married Barbara and returned to the States, settling on an idyl­lic island in Puget Sound. He continued to consult on projects around the world, espe­cially in Thailand, where he once more put his skills to good use in completing major projects for Siemens, Texas Instruments, and other companies.

From their island home, Chuck continued to live life to the fullest, hiking in the nearby mountains, sailing his Thai-named “Little Red Boat,” walking his beloved dogs, Shep and Beau Geste, puttering in his workshop, and entertaining his and Barbara’s long list of friends and family, including his two sons, Scott and Todd.

Chuck died much as he lived. Faced with the vicissitudes of prolonged treatment for prostate cancer, Chuck still managed to dis­play his exuberant spirit and care for others. What did we learn from Chuck? Among other things, we learned the value of being connected to others.

Well done Luton; be thou at peace.

Dick Nelson ’60