CHARLES
FREEMAN HUNTING (1919 – 2011)
Charles Freeman Hunting (commonly
known as “CFH”), a figure well known in Worldwide Church of God (WCG) circles
and its offshoots, died at a hospice in Sarasota, Florida, on 11th of November,
2011 – Veterans Day (or Remembrance / Armistice Day). He was just short of his
93rd birthday.
CFH was a strong and colorful
personality, handsome in appearance and very persuasive in vocal delivery.
Friends and opponents alike considered him a person of charm and warmth, with a
mischievous streak. Charles could be insensitive and overly candid in expressing
his opinions, although he had a reputation for being honest. He was a gifted
speaker who could both inspire and instill fear. At the height of his career in
the WCG, he was one of the top five executives, and met dignitaries, presidents
and royalty in many countries, including Emperor Haile Selassie, Golda Meir,
Yigal Yadin, Gideon Hausner, King Leopold, and the presidents of Lebanon and
Egypt. His life can be conveniently segmented into three stages – the roughly
35 years before joining the WCG, the 20 years as part of that organization, and
the 35 plus years of a relatively quiet life after separation from the group.
Charles Hunting was the second and
last child of Charles and Esther Hunting, born on 11th January 1919 in Santa
Monica, California. He attended Redlands High School, then 3 years at San
Bernardino College and one year at UCLA. Shortly thereafter WWII started and he
volunteered for the Navy as a trainee pilot, received 6 or so weeks of flight
training for combat fighters, and was dispatched on an aircraft carrier to the
Pacific theatre. During the battle of Guadalcanal in late 1942 he was shot down
by “friendly fire”, wanted to bail out, but his parachute was riddled with
machine gun fire and full of blood. The plane crashed into the ocean, he
survived and was rescued by locals paddling out on canoes. CFH continued to fly
fighter and dive bombing combat missions from carriers till the end of the war,
and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart.
During the war CFH met Miss Veryle
Cheney who served in the navy’s Medical Corp. After the war romance blossomed
and in 1946 they apparently eloped across the border to Mexico where they were
married. The coupled settled in Long Beach, California and had three children.
CFH started a business refitting and refurbishing electrical transformers,
having learnt the basics for the trade from a relative. It became very
successful. Charles remained in the Navy Reserves and was training on jet
planes when he abruptly resigned in 1956, just six months before he was to
qualify for a Navy pension. He was a Lieutenant Commander when he retired. This
unusual action was triggered by Charles’s decision to dedicate his life to the
WCG church, which had been founded in the 1930’s by Herbert W Armstrong (HWA),
and was a pacifist organization.
The family moved to Pasadena where
in 1958, aged 39, CFH enrolled for a BA in liberal arts at the church’s
training institution, Ambassador College (AC). His credits from previous
tertiary studies reduced the normal time of four years by one, and thus he was
never a sophomore. In his freshman year his first part-time job on the campus
was on the garbage collection crew, but his progress within the organization
thereafter was rather meteoric. His junior year saw him in charge of “the mail
reading division” which handled the thousands of inquiries and requests for
church literature, and appointed the lead on a two man team visiting church
supporters. Charles was also a sportsman of note. In each of his two years at
the Pasadena campus, he was the tennis champion and best hand ball player. In
his senior year he was the Student Body President, ordained a minister in the
WCG and transferred, with his family, to the Bricket Wood (Hertfordshire, UK)
campus in March 1961, three months prior to graduation. In June 1961 he
received his BA in the first graduation ceremony for the English campus, and
was then given a flurry of responsibilities --- appointed as a lecturer at the
English campus, made its bursar, appointed to Business Manager of the WCG’s
activities in Europe, ordained a minister of the WCG, and designated the pastor
of the Bristol WCG church. In 1962 he was raised to the level of “preaching
elder”, and later in the same year ordained as a “pastor” rank minister. In
January 1964 he was ordained an “evangelist”, bringing the total number of
evangelists in the WCG to 12 at that time. In December 1969 he was appointed as
one of the nine Vice Presidents of the WCG. He formed an effective team with
the Regional Director for Europe, Raymond McNair.
In the mid-1960’s, HWA began to form
personal friendships with a number of powerful figures, particularly in Israel,
Germany and Asia. These included kings, dictators, high officials, as well as
elected presidents. CFH, as one of HWA’s trusted advisers, was a frequent
traveling companion (often along with his wife Veryle) on these trips, which
took them across the globe. These travels were undertaken while still
performing all his other responsibilities. Unfortunately, Charles’s wife Veryle
died of cancer in 1973 and was buried on the campus grounds. Apparently in that
year HWA indicated to CFH that he would eventually be elevated to the number
two position in the organization, and that he would need to move to Pasadena.
However there was considerable opposition to this plan and it never eventuated.
Instead in 1974 CFH was appointed the regional director of the entire WCG
activities in the UK, Europe and the Middle East, whilst the incumbent in that
job, Raymond McNair, was transferred to Pasadena.
During this time the WCG began to
experience a series of crises. Various scandals shook the church, and several
senior ministers and internal theologians began to question some of the
doctrines. CFH was persuaded that some of the core teachings were in error. He
spoke out, and his relationship with the WCG ended in late 1975. He resolved
not to take a salary again from a religious organization; however, he never
lost his faith in God and Christianity.
CFH threw his still considerable
energies into making a living, and became involved in, among other ventures,
construction in Dubai and golf courses in Spain. In 1980 he married again. His
new wife was Barbara Greville-Smith, an English widow whom he had met in Spain,
and whose best friend was Mrs. Yolande Farrell of Sarasota. Yolande and her
husband Dick Farrell formed a longstanding close friendship with Charles. The
Hunting’s moved to Vero Beach, Florida, where they lived in a duplex that CFH
built. He resumed studying biblical doctrines privately and with help from Sir
Anthony Buzzard was soon convinced of the Christian non-Trinitarian view of
God, and co-wrote a book with him on the subject. He became a supporter of
Buzzard’s Restoration Fellowship for many years.
The year 1997 was traumatic as first
his mother died, then both his only sister Frances and her husband Jack Bryan
also died, and finally his wife Barbara passed away from cancer. Although
Charles, now 78, became a man of considerable means due to his brother-in-law
and sister’s estate being left to him, he chose to live his remaining years
without flare or extravagance. He briefly moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and
shortly thereafter in 1998 bought a modest 2 bedroom stucco semi-detached
cottage close by his friends the Farrell’s in Sarasota, where he lived happily
until his death. He supported humanitarian projects in the Philippines and
Africa, making overseas visits on several occasions there and to relatives and
friends in Australia until his health made it impractical. As with many
hard-driving, successful men, his great regret was that he was not closer to
his immediate family members.
About four years ago his health
began to decline and he eventually needed kidney dialysis. CFH outlived his
close friend Dick Farrell. Mrs. Yolande Farrell helped care for him in the last
years of his life as he became increasingly infirm, although she herself was
already in her 80’s. Charles was admitted to hospital in early November, and a
few days before he died was moved to a hospice. His youngest son, Paul,
daughter Sidni and her husband Dennis, together with Mrs. Farrell, were with
him in his final days. His eldest son Chris, in Australia, was unable to travel
there. CFH died in his sleep, and was buried in the Department of Veterans
Affairs Sarasota National Cemetery.
Charles Freeman Hunting is survived
by his three children, Chris, Sidni and Paul, as well as nine grandchildren and
eleven great-grandchildren. Chris Hunting suggests the following should be his
epitaph:
“A unique individual who achieved
much. Respected and admired by most,
feared by many; a truly larger than
life character, but not without human flaws”
[Obituary prepared by Dr. Garry de
Jager, Robert Gerringer and Chris Hunting]
