Charles Everts Mangan

Charles Everts Mangan, Jr (Eph to friends), 82, passed away on July 20, 2019 at Regional Hospice of Western CT after a record-breaking length of stay. He was born on January 18th, 1937, in Johnson City, NY to Charles and Margery (Dwyer) Mangan.

Eph grew up in Rye, NY with his sister Nancy. He graduated from the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, CT in 1955.  During his high school years, he received a varsity letter in five sports (football, soccer, basketball, hockey and baseball) and was captain of the football, basketball, hockey and baseball teams, receiving a total of 11 varsity letters and 1 junior varsity letter. After high school, he attended Hamilton College in Clinton, NY, graduating in 1959.  He was Athletic Chairman, House Manager, Vice-President and President of Delta Upsilon Fraternity and served as player-coach for the football, hockey and baseball teams leading them to numerous championships during his four years at Hamilton.  

After the summer of 1959, Eph entered the United States Navy and was sent for training to the Navy’s Officer Candidates School, Newport, RI where he was commissioned an Ensign in late 1959.  Upon graduation he was assigned as the Anti-submarine Warfare Officer aboard the destroyer USS Maddox (DD 731) in a specialized Anti-submarine Hunter Killer Group on several cruises to the Far East.  The Maddox’s mission in peacetime was to protect all shipping by locating and harassing any spying foreign submarine and in wartime to search for and destroy enemy submarines and to provide gunfire support to troops making a landing ashore.  While on leave with the Navy in Japan, he played baseball on a team representing the 7th Fleet. After leaving the Maddox, he was attached to the 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, an artillery regiment (the “Cannon Cockers”), at Camp Pendleton, CA as its Naval Gunfire Officer and lived on the beach in Oceanside, CA.  He was assigned to an Admiral-in-Command’s staff as its Gunfire Officer. During the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, the Regiment boarded ship and went to and from the Caribbean transiting the Panama Canal in both directions while playing a role in the task force ordered to impose a naval quarantine against arms shipments to Cuba.  Eph remained with the Marine Corps before being discharged from the Navy as a Lieutenant in 1965, shortly before the Regiment began its gradual deployment to South Viet Nam.

After the military, he joined the Bank of New York before moving and becoming Vice-President of the Westport Bank and Trust Company before retiring in 2000 as Assistant Vice President of the Union Savings Bank at Danbury, CT.  

Eph was a long time Mason in Ark Lodge 39 and was its Treasurer for a number of years. He was also Treasurer, Vice-President, President and Director of the Jesse P. Sanford Boys Club in Redding, CT. While associated with the Boys Club, he coached football, soccer, basketball and baseball at all levels. He remained active in baseball serving as a Director, Counselor and past Treasurer of The Danbury Westerners Baseball Club, a collegiate level team, which competes in a summer wooden bat league - The New England Collegiate Baseball League, where he was also Deputy Commissioner, ‘riding shotgun’ to meetings and games throughout New England. He was a member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society and a Charter Member of the Housatonic Valley Sports Authority.

Eph married Meredith Bradford Kuhn in 1965 and after moving to Redding, CT had three fine sons, Bill, Greggory and Doug.  He met Judy Teed in 1984 and after a long courtship, closely supervised by their children, they were married in 1993. They lived in the Bethel, CT area for many years.  

Eph was preceded in death by his step-daughter-in-law, Liz.

Eph is survived by his spouse Judy of Bethel, CT; his sister Nancy (Newbold) LeRoy of Laconia, NH; his sons Bill (Sue) of Anderson, CA, Greggory (Kari) of New Fairfield, CT, Doug (Megan) of Scottsdale, AZ, Stewart of Bethel, CT and Meg of New Milford, CT; his grandchildren Catherine, Griffin, Lucas, Graham, Cooper, Jaimie, Sierra and Kai; his nieces and nephews Jane, Elizabeth and Robert and other relatives.  

Eph enjoyed travelling to family vacations, provided that someone else was driving and no airplanes or bridges were involved.  Besides his children and grandchildren (and butter), Eph’s passion was youth sports, especially baseball and he enjoyed many, many years on diamonds, courts and ballfields where he truly relished all the connections he made with so many.  Eph was also an avid Genealogist and spent many trips with Newb searching for missing pieces of family trees and inexpensive cocktails.

Eph defined the term “gentleman”: to the very end, he was giving of his time to anyone that asked.  A man of few words, he possessed a keen wit and was a gifted storyteller. While he was often seen with his signature pipe in his younger days, he had given that up several years ago after much encouragement (or nagging).  Another attribute Eph was known for was has fierce handshake and enormous bear hugs; you were blessed to receive either or both. 

The family would like to thank the Oncology Department at the Praxair Cancer Center, especially Dr. Kloss and the dedicated nurses and volunteers who cared for him there. We would also like to warmly thank all the caring staff and incredible volunteers at Regional Hospice for providing loving care to Eph during his extended stay with them.  We are VERY lucky to have such a fine facility so close.  

A memorial gathering will be held for family and friends at a future, undetermined date.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to the wonderful Regional Hospice of Western CT, 30 Milestone Rd, Danbury, CT 06810. 

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