Charles Irvin Hutchins

When you met Charles Hutchins, you found a friend.

Born October 18, 1942, in Winston-Salem, NC, Charles relished people, laughter, love, and most of all Jesus for an incredible 81 years. A dutiful son who loved and served his mom and dad well, a companion to his brother, James, til the end; he found his bride, Brenda Westmoreland, at a Pilot Mountain dance. Their 59 years of marriage were bound with strong ties as both families loved him dearly, as he loved them. After working at RJR for 19 years, he opened “A Cleaner World” on Healy Drive, and so many customers became friends after sharing a slice of their life with his ever-listening ear. They always seemed to leave happier than when they came. He was just someone with whom anyone could engage. You knew by the depth of his laughter or the tears in his eyes that he heard you. After retiring, he never sat still despite tremendous and ongoing health battles. He volunteered for years with the Special Needs class at Calvary, where he and Brenda have been actively involved members since 1965. He was saddened when he could no longer physically participate but left a lot of love behind. He had so many joys in life: fishing, working hard, playing golf, frying chicken or a million other tasty (but less than heart-healthy) foods, smoking a good cigar...but mostly he loved his entire family dearly. After Brenda, he cherished his son, Todd, and daughter Lori. Their spouses, Jeff Watson and Angie Rentenbach, became his own. His intensity of love multiplied further from 1997-2002 with the birth of each grandson: Jacob, Noah, Ty, Cooper, Mark, Liam, and Zach. He spent much time with each one, forging bonds, attending countless athletic events, doing things that were important to each and always taking each one to lunch on a regular rotation. In their words: kindness, wisdom, making people laugh, hole-in-the-wall-diner-finder, willingness to give, patience and wholesome charm...these were just some of the characteristics that most embody the man they've known as Papa. He was elated when Noah married Miranda and was so excited for Jacob and Anna's engagement and loved dreaming of the future with them all. He looked forward and encouraged each one so well for their life's journeys to be grounded on the bedrock of salvation in Christ. He modeled Biblical manhood not only for them, but to their friends and others. Not ever in a showy-look-at-me way. Just one of simple service and care and presence. One of his phrases to live by when presented with just about any hard situation was, "It's a skinny rabbit," meaning it’s not worth catching, so let it go. And that's how he lived. He embodied the extravagant love of Christ in connecting with people. Family, friends, acquaintances, even servers at restaurants or someone he'd meet in a parking lot. Because when you met Charles Hutchins, you found a friend. He was preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Minnie Rea Hutchins. In addition to his loving wife Brenda, children and grandchildren named above, he leaves behind his brother James (Faye), his brother-in-law Philip (Sandy) Westmoreland, his sister-in-law, Tina (Glenn) Chaney, a favored uncle, Roy Lee Cornatzer, as well as nieces, nephews and other family and friends to carry his joy forward while missing him greatly.  A funeral service will be held 130pm Monday, November 20, 2023 at Calvary Baptist Church. Family will recieve friends one hour prior. In lieu of flowers, memorials should be sent to Calvary Baptist Church, 134 S. Peace Haven Rd., Winston-Salem, NC 27104. Online condolences may be sent to www.hayworth-miller.com.