LAKE GENEVA, WI (October 18, 2014) — Retired president of Covenant Trust Company Charles “Chuck” Walles, 76, died this morning. He had been in hospice care.
A memorial service will be conducted at 2 p.m. Sunday, November 2, in Anderson Chapel on the campus of North Park University.
Chuck was born February 22, 1938, in Glen Ellyn. He married his wife, Darlene Dick, in June 1967. She survives.
He graduated Wheaton Academy and Wheaton College.
At a ceremony honoring Walles at the 2010 Covenant Annual Meeting, denomination President Gary Walter told delegates that he and Chuck had discussed how “success is about the life I live, but significance is what lives on because of the life I lived.” On Saturday, Walter said, “Chuck lived a life of significance that will continue to advance the gospel. He embodied what it meant to be fully committed to God, to family, and the work of Jesus in the world.”
Chuck was chair of Anchor Covenant Church in Lake Geneva when Pastor Bruce Bruns began his ministry. In a Facebook post, Bruns shared, “Chuck was [my son] Jack’s confirmation buddy and over four years, knowing that the move was hard on Jack, and middle school was proving harder, Chuck checked in with Jack constantly: ‘How are you doing? How’s school? Are you making friends?’ He bought Jack a Cubs t-shirt two years ago for Christmas. Both Darlene and Chuck made a move that was difficult for the whole family easier for everyone.”
Chuck joined Covenant Trust Company (CTC) in 1991 as financial services representative for the Mid-America region. He was named vice president for marketing in 1995 and became executive director of Covenant Estate Planning Services and president of CTC in 2001.
At the time, Chuck said, “It is a passion for the diverse ministries of our church that drives and energizes me. I believe the best model of leadership is that of a servant. It’s the foundation on which everything else is built.”
He retired in 2010. In the nine years that he was president, distributions to Covenant causes through CTC grew by more than $100 million.
Before joining CTC, he served on the North Park University Board of Directors and served as chair of Plymouth Covenant Church in Plymouth, Minnesota.
In addition to his wife, survivors include two daughters, Wendy Kalestad (Brian) and Heather van Blyenburgh (Theodore); and a son, Derek Walles (Carin), and eight grandchildren, Nathan, Lily, Michelle, Doreen, Delen, Bennett, Charlotte, and Mavis.
To watch a video of Chuck being honored at the 2010 Annual Meeting, click here.
