Obituary of Charles Wesley Read

It is with some sadness and some joy we announce the passing of Charles Read at the age of 70. Sadness that he will be truly missed and joy that he is no longer in pain. He was born July 24th, 1951, to Tom and Dionisha (Poirier) Read, by whom he was predeceased. Charles is survived by his rock of 48 years, his wife Helen (MacEachern), son Michael (Kalin McCluskey) in Ottawa, Beth O’Donnell (Travis) in Fredericton, and his grandsons Wesley and Andrew O’Donnell. He is further survived by siblings Sheila Coleman (Jack), Darrell (Barb), Paula Gardner, Rhonda Smith (Barry) all of Sydney, NS; Bill (Karen) of Saskatoon; Debbie MacArthur (Alan) of Edmonton; In-Laws John MacEachern, Alex MacEachern, Don MacEachern (Sylvia), Mervyn MacEachern, Evelyn Green (Fred), Edmund MacEachern (Colleen) of Sydney, NS; as well as many nieces and nephews across Canada. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his brother Tom Read (Susan) of Dieppe; his in-laws Donald and Ellen MacEachern as well as brother-in-law Brian Gardner. Charles was born and grew up in Cape Breton and was a proud, die hard Caper in every sense of the word. He began his career in the insurance industry there as a claims adjuster. Through the years, he moved through sales, to management to starting his own brokerage. In 1992, lured by Canada Life, he moved to Fredericton, NB, to take over as their regional manager for the territory. In 1996, he started his own wealth management firm, Charles W. Read & Associates Inc., now Generations Wealth Management under the direction of his son-in-law, Travis. Charles began his career with the Co-operators in 1973 and spent 48 years in the industry. When he went out on his own, he began his business like many, at a desk in his basement. Through hard work and a reputation for great client service, he grew that business to the largest book of Manulife business east of Montreal. Charles was a fellow of the Insurance Institute of Canada, a lifetime member of the Life Underwriters Association of Canada (now Advocis), and many other industry accolades for excellence in client service. Charles was an active volunteer in the community and loved to help people. While in Sydney, he revived the Scouting movement in Coxheath, NS. In Fredericton, he was actively involved in the Boys and Girls Club and an active donor to the many local organizations. His most recent passion was advocating for people with Scleroderma, of which he had been afflicted. He enjoyed gardening and taking his grandsons fishing. He lived for spending summers at the family bungalow in Ben Eoin and swimming at Big Pond Beach where he made many friends. As per Charles’ wishes there will be no visitation. A funeral service will be held at a later date in Cape Breton. In lieu of flowers, the family request you make a donation to Scleroderma Atlantic, PO Box 31102, Gladstone, Halifax, NS, B3K 5T9, or sclerodermaatlanic.ca. Ever the planner, Charlie’s final gift to his family was the first draft of this obituary. We hope we did him justice in completing it.