For the past 35 years, The Woodstock Independent has been publishing articles about local educators who are retiring. We ran our first one in 1990, wh…
July 2, 2025
Charles F. “Chuck” Michling Jr., 78, of Woodstock, passed away peacefully at his home for the past five years, Valley Hi Nursing Home, on March 15, 2025.
Chuck was born on Jan. 26, 1947, to Charles Sr. and Caroline (Kirchgassner) Michling in Chicago. Chuck was the oldest of four children, and the family moved to rural McHenry County in December 1956. Chuck’s love of and vast knowledge of history made it only fitting that he passed on The Ides of March.
Chuck was a 1965 graduate of Woodstock High School, a 1969 graduate of Augustana College in Rock Island with a history degree, and then in 1982 from Roosevelt University in Chicago he received a paralegal degree. Chuck’s work life was varied and included one year as a roaming substitute teacher in the Chicago Public Schools System, with his longest tenure at Woodstock Wire Works, where friendships with co-workers continued to the very end.
Chuck enjoyed fishing, hunting, a little bit of gardening, and cheering on the Chicago Cubs and Chicago Bears. For many years he would embark on a two-week summer road trip, sightseeing, visiting relatives and exploring libraries wherever his travels took him.
Chuck loved books, bookstores, newspapers, libraries, and most of all family. To say Chuck was well read is an understatement. He was an Uncle Extraordinaire. He rarely, if ever, forgot a family member’s birthday. Chuck filled his family roles of brother-in-law and godfather with humor and grace. He blessed his siblings by being the primary caregiver to our mom. Chuck did not have a mean bone in his body.
Chuck is survived by his three siblings, Caroline Kerschke of Marengo, Pete (Cheryl) Michling of Woodstock, and Alan (Cherie) Dartanyan of Duluth, Minn. Chuck is also survived by six nieces and nephews; 10 great-nieces and -nephews; various cousins scattered across the United States, and friends near and far.
Chuck was preceded in death by his parents and his brother-in-law, Robert Kerschke.
A traditional Lutheran service will be held for Chuck on Friday, March 28, 2025, at Grace Lutheran Church, 1300 Kishwaukee Valley Road, Woodstock; visitation will be from 10 to 11 a.m., with the funeral service at 11 a.m.. Interment will be private and for family only at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Harvard, Ill. Memorials may be made to the Friends of the Woodstock Public Library, Grace Lutheran Church, or McHenry County’s Crown Jewel, Valley Hi Nursing Home.
For more information, call the Schneider, Leucht, Merwin & Cooney Funeral Home at 815-338-1710; or visit slmcfh.com.
