Charles “Charlie” Edward Priest Sr., 86, of Deep River, passed away peacefully on March 9, 2024, after a short illness. Born on Dec. 29, 1937, in Middletown to Helena and Edwin Priest, Charlie was the oldest of three siblings.

Upon graduation from Valley Regional High School in 1955, Charlie worked at the Valley Met and at UARCO in Deep River until its closing in 1998. From then until his retirement, he worked as groundskeeper at the Bushnell Farm in Old Saybrook.

He is predeceased by his parents and brother, William Henderson, and by many loving cats, including Athena, Leo, Lexi, Misha, and Zoe. He is mourned and will always be lovingly remembered by his longtime partner, Connie Thomas. Charlie is survived by his sister Susan Henderson of Mt. Airy, North Carolina; his children: Regina Chase of Moodus, Charles Edward Priest Jr. (Velver) of Weld, Maine, Sharon Gessaro of East Haddam, Andrew Priest (JoAnn) of East Haddam, and Kelly Thomas Bee of Middletown; and his grandchildren: Amy, Jesse, Emily, Matthew, Alena, Julie, Lawson, Elsa, and Macayla.

Charlie will be forever remembered for his playful, dry humor and his gentle attitude behind the sarcasm — like he was letting you in on a shared joke. He adored his grandchildren and was fond of giving them money whenever asked (sometimes even if they didn’t) with a wink and a wisecrack. His favorite holidays were April Fool’s Day and Halloween, where joking around was appreciated and encouraged. He was a lifelong fan of the outdoors, enjoying golf at Banner Lodge in Moodus, hunting at his camp in Tunbridge, Vermont, and fishing on Cedar Lake or Long Island Sound. Charlie was known for hosting weekly poker games in his garage or darts in his basement with John, Jim, Barry, Tyrone, Bobby, and Red, and playing pool with Howard at Kirtland Commons. As a member of the Masonic Order and both the Chester and Deep River Volunteer Fire Departments, Charlie was always a known and active member in his local communities, or simply brightening anyone’s day when they were fortunate enough to bump into him grocery shopping or running errands around town. He was a fan of UConn basketball, the New England Patriots, and NASCAR.

A celebration of Charlie’s life and memories will be held with his family and friends at a date and location to be announced. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in his name to the Connecticut Humane Society (https://cthumane.org) or leave some food and water out for your local cats and deer.