Obituary of Charles Wright

Charles David Wright of New Canaan, CT died peacefully at Bridges by EPOCH in Norwalk on Thursday morning, December 12, 2024. He was 86 years old.

Born on April 1, 1938, to Percy Charles Wright and Lylah Fisch Wright in Pittsburg, CA, he was predeceased by his brother and his sister, Richard and Janet Wright. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Deborah McCormick Wright, his son David and his wife Catherine Wang of Walnut Creek, CA, his daughter Eleanor of Brighton, MA, his granddaughters Keilah and Sophie Wright, and many loving family members and friends. 

After graduating from Pittsburg High School, he attended UC Davis and UC Berkeley and served briefly in the US Marine Corps. His career path took him from Sacramento to Philadelphia where he worked for National Drug Company, a subsidiary of Richardson-Vicks, Chuck crisscrossed the globe, building relationships, collecting coins, dolls, flags and beer cans for his kids, and overseeing the company's Human Resources function throughout Latin American the Far East. In the early '90s, Richardson-Vicks was absorbed by Procter & Gamble and Chuck stayed on to facilitate the transition before retiring from P&G in 1998.Too young to fully retire, he transitioned to the "search" side of the industry, joining Stanton Chase International, a boutique Global Retained Executive Search firm as its Managing Director of the New York Regional Operating Center. In December of 2021, Chuck retired and settled comfortably in his cherished role as Pop Pop.

A devoted husband and loving father, Pop Pop was always there to crack a joke or lend sage advice. A true believer in community, Chuck was eager to serve and did so via his involvement with local causes and institutions including the New Canaan Library, the New Canaan Inn (President), New Canaan Nature Center, the New Canaan Men's Club, and Waveny Care Center. Chuck was also a long-time member and served as President of the Country Club of New Canaan. His eternal optimism and "can-do" spirit surely helped shepherd these causes to new heights during his tenure. 

Charlie cherished his many summers on Marthas Vinyard with his family where, if not on the golf course or grilling swordfish for dinner, he was likely to be leading clamming trips, waterskiing expeditions, or excursions to nearby islands on his beloved boat, the Bugdozer. 

No account of Chuck's life would be complete without mentioning his gift for, and love of, music. Whether playing trombone in the New Canaan Town Band and marching down Main Street on Memorial Day, jamming with friends, dancing or just listening, if music was involved, he was in his element. Always the life of the party, he had a unique ability to warm up a room. From that first note at the piano, his fingers would effortlessly glide over the ivories, playing show tunes, Christmas carols, Beatles hits or jazz riffs. Nowhere was he more at home than on his piano bench.

Whether you called him Charles, Chuck, Charlie, Dad, or Pop Pop, if you know him at all your life was better for it.

A Celebration of Life will be held at a date to be determined, in summer 2025. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association or to one of the New Canaan non-profits mentioned above.