Charles Minear

Charles Wesley Minear Sr. passed away on Thursday, October 30th, 2025 at the age of 93. He was born February 25th, 1932 in West Palm Beach, Florida. The youngest of four boys, he grew up in nearby Jupiter, Florida, on the banks of the Loxahatchee River in a pre-fab house his parents ordered from the Montgomery Ward Catalogue. It was shipped south in pieces by rail and stood there for more than 80 years.

In 1952, Chuck enlisted in the United States Navy and served during the Korean Conflict, earning a Good Conduct Medal, Korean Foreign Service Medal and a United Nations Service Medal. Afterward, he attended John Brown University in Arkansas. Academics not being his forte, he dropped out. But better than a degree, during his stint at JBU, he met Madeline Ethel Gotts — soon to be Madeline Minear.

Before marrying, Chuck started his New York sojourn, where he attended RCA Technical Institute. An autodidact with a gift for electronics and audio engineering, Chuck secured a job working as a sound engineer at Calvary Baptist Church in Manhattan. There he really learned on the job and became a first rate radio engineer. Once employed and on his path, he came back to California to claim his bride. Chuck and Madeline were married in Whittier, California in 1961, then the young couple returned to NYC, where they started a family. Charles Jr. was born in 1962 and Timothy in 1963. The young family then moved to the Bronx in New York City and then across the river to Rutherford, New Jersey. In 1968 the family relocated back to Madeline’s hometown of Whittier. For a time they lived with Madeline’s mother, Ethel Gotts, before purchasing a modest home across the street.

Chuck worked in religious broadcasting for his entire career. He was the sound engineer at Lake Avenue Congregational Church in Pasadena, California for several years. Once the family moved into a larger home in Uptown Whittier, Chuck converted the upstairs of the home into a full recording studio, ingeniously transforming the backyard underground bomb shelter into a practical echo chamber for his recordings. Eventually Chuck and Madeline purchased what was a dentist office on Duchess Drive and turned it into a first class recording studio, dubbed Duchess Studios, in the heart of Whittier.

As Madeline rose in the ranks of public education, Chuck pursued his passion, not only for recording and audio editing, but serving Christ through specializing in religious broadcasting and music production. He had long-standing relationships with Christian artists and broadcasters, including engineering and editing for The Far East Broadcasting Company and Haven Of Rest Ministries, the Christian Brotherhood Hour and Evangelist Alberto Mottesi. The programs and music he engineered were heard around the world on hundreds of radio stations every day. Once when questioning his contribution to the cause of Christ, one religious broadcaster reminded Chuck that because of his talent and tireless behind the scenes work, many have heard the Gospel who otherwise may not have had the opportunity. Not limited to studio recordings, Chuck had a gift for location recordings, capturing complex musical performances with skill. Chuck also volunteered and ran sound at the family’s home church, The Whittier Church Of God.

Chuck was a faithful husband and father. He lost his beloved wife of nearly sixty years to Alzheimer’s Disease in 2020. All through her decline Chuck never wavered in his devotion. Chuck loved Jesus and his family; westerns and war movies. He is survived by his sons, Charles Wesley Minear, Jr. and Timothy Paul Minear. They will remember him fondly and with gratitude. They are both comforted by the knowledge that their Father and Mother are together again, reunited with each other and their Savior.