Charles Freeman Thomas

Charles (Chuck) Freeman Thomas, 87, who resided in Rockford, Illinois, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and Marco Island, Florida, passed away peacefully on October 8th, 2021.

He was born in Rockford, Illinois on June 26th, 1934 to Charles and Irene Thomas. Chuck graduated from West High School in 1952, then went on to pursue both his undergraduate and his Juris Doctorate degrees at Georgetown University. He once aspired to the priesthood, but discovered it just wasn't for him and later graduated from law school in 1960. He married the one true love of his life, Mary Suzanne Johnson, on October 4th, 1958. For over sixty-three years, their deep, abiding love and amazing partnership was respected and admired by many.

Chuck was an accomplished attorney throughout the greater Northern Illinois region with a career spanning over sixty-one years. Anyone that was fortunate enough to cross his path knew his passion for helping people, no matter who they were. Chuck once said, "Whoever comes to you as a client needs your help, whether it's the CEO of a healthcare company or its the cleaning lady. On a spiritual side, it's like a priest, they just need you to hold their hand."

He began practicing law in Rockford, Illinois in 1960, then joined forces with his father, Charles A. Thomas, in 1967 when they formed Thomas & Thomas Law Firm. His areas of expertise were in the fields of banking and finance, general corporate, aviation and health care law. In the mid 60's he took over his father's board position with National City Bank then later became Chairman of the Board in 1982. The firm grew and eventually became Thomas, Keeling & Moore. Later, it had the distinct privilege of merging with the Chicago based firm Hinshaw & Culbertson. During this time, Chuck was named by Law Magazine as one of twenty top lawyers in Illinois. He also received the highest honor award from Hinshaw & Culbertson in 2006. He held the highest rating from Martindale and Hubbell for ethics and legal ability and was named by his peers as "Super Lawyer" in the area of Business Litigation. Chuck was licensed to practice law in the federal court system and had the privilege of arguing a case before the US Supreme Court on behalf of the city of Rockford.

Chuck served on many boards throughout his life. He served on the board of directors of three Rockford area banks including over fifty years of service with Byron Bank. He was also Chairman of the Board of BancServe Group. He was a member of the Illinois Bankers Association, the Illinois Public Airports Association, the State of Illinois Airport Zoning Task Force, the Lay Advisory Board of St Anthony Medical Center, the past Director of the Rockford Area Chamber of Commerce and its Executive Committee, the past Chairman of the Winnebago County Housing Authority, the Illinois Public Airports Association, the former Director of the Rockford Local Development and also served as Commissioner of the Greater Rockford Airport Authority. In addition, he spent over forty years serving the Rockford Catholic Diocese as their legal counsel.

In 1984, Chuck became President of the Board of Trustees of St. Anthony Medical Center. In 1989, he became Director of the OSF Healthcare Foundation. Chuck was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Law degree from the St. Anthony College of Nursing. He sat on the Board of Directors of OSF for fifty years and was extensively involved with the Sisters of the Third Order.

Chuck not only worked hard, but believed in playing hard too. He took to the sky for sixty-eight years in a wide variety of aircraft. He was the first person to bring hot air ballooning to Rockford, Illinois in 1971, which began five decades of ballooning around the world. Adventures included the 40th Anniversary Celebration of Independence in Israel, being the first balloon to ever fly over the Great Wall of China, participating in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, NY representing Finland, competing in ten National Championships, attending the World Air games in Turkey and Spain, racing in Saga, Japan, and being a part of the Kool Pro Hot Air Balloon Tour during the 80's. He also tried out gas ballooning and entered a race which took him from Las Vegas to California. Later, he developed an interest in powered parachutes and became so well versed in flying these that he was asked to teach JFK Jr how to fly this unique aircraft. This interaction soon led to a trusted kinship between the two.

As far as fixed wing aircraft, Chuck was a master of all sorts of planes over his lifetime. His pride and joy was his 1942 Stearman World War II bi-wing airplane in which he loved to take others for an exhilarating ride over the farm or the lake. From a J-3 Cub, Cessna 210 to his King Air, and many aircraft in between, if you couldn't find Chuck- you just had to look upward as there was a good chance he was flying the friendly skies! He then decided he didn't need an engine to go upwards and took up soaring in gliders. There was nothing he would not try if it got his feet off the ground!

A favorite quote Chuck was heard saying often was, "Never waste a minute", and this certainly held true when it came to athletics. Competing in four marathons and over one hundred and fifty triathlons well into his 80's, Chuck never slowed down.

Chuck loved weekends spent on his family farm, Kings Acres, where he could be found playing polo, taking off in one of his aircraft or harvesting his home grown honey called "Glory Bee". He was the first person to bring both the game of Polo and organized Fox Hunts to Rockford, Illinois. Having grown up on Lake Geneva, he had a lifetime love of the water. He held the record for swimming the length of the lake by age eighteen and was on the first search and rescue dive team for the Lake Geneva Water Safety Patrol. If not in the sky, or on a horse, or in the water, he was surely out biking the country roads as he found great peace and time to think while on two wheels.

He recently reminded us of a favorite mantra he lived by:
"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!”

Chuck's commitment to and passion for his family was remarkable. He recently stated that his greatest accomplishment was his children. His children and grandchildren have been permanently shaped by his sense of adventure and love for life.

He will be remembered by his beloved wife, Sue, his six children, Kellee, Kim, Chuck, Mike, Debbie, Susie and their respective families including his sixteen grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his daughter, Denise and his son-in-law, Rick.

We welcome you all to join us as we celebrate Chuck and his adventurous life. He touched many lives in his 87 years on this Earth! We will forever remember his incredible zeal for life, his never ending pursuit of adventure, and his deep love of people. While his strong work ethic earned him many accolades, he always remained humble and more than willing to give another in need the shirt off his back.

The funeral will be held on Friday, October 15th at 11:00 a.m. at St. Bridget Catholic Church, 600 Clifford Avenue, Loves Park, IL 61111 with a Celebration of Life immediately following at the parish hall. For those unable to attend, Mass will be available by live stream at the following link, https://www.stbridgetlovespark.org/, Click "View Live Steam".

In lieu of flowers, the family would like to honor Chuck's dedication to the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis (OSF) by accepting donations to the Autism Collective at www.theautismcollective.org. The family was assisted by Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, 3910 N. Rockton Ave Rockford. Extend condolences or share memories at www.fitzgeraldfh.com