Charles Stanley Wilkinson Jr.

Charles Stanley Wilkinson, Jr., 75, passed away at home on Thursday February 8, 2024. Charlie was born and raised in Bridgeport, CT, the second of nine children born to Charles Sr. and Amy Wilkinson. He discovered his love of fishing as a kid on the shore, and spent a lot of his spare time crabbing and fishing along the coast. During Charlie’s career path he became a welder and a knowledgeable arborist, working not only on utility line clearance but also as a climber, ground hand and bucket truck operator in the care and maintenance of trees. Charlie also worked in the steeple jack trade erecting steel towers. His early years spent fishing grew into a fascination with keeping a large aquarium with salt water fish and a beautiful living reef scape. More recently he devoted himself to an outdoor koi fish pond that gave him much joy and pleasure. Charlie was an avid reader. He maintained an increasingly rare delivery subscription to the New York Times paper editions and read them daily. He consumed Tom Clancy novels and similar writings. Many reference books were owned and studied to accomplish his varied interests. While Charlie knew many people and made friends easily his real focus became his faith and his love for Tammy (his girlfriend). Charlie was a practicing Buddhist and often took comfort in his mantras. His chanting could be heard throughout the house, but the peace that he found was even louder. Charlie was preceded in death by his father Charles Wilkinson, Sr.; his mother Amy Wilkinson; his sister Pat; and his brother Kim. He is survived by his longtime partner Tammy; his siblings Charlotte, Carrie, Belinda, Christine, Joan, and Glenn; his godson and nephew Robert; and countless nieces, nephews, and cousins. Charlie's visitation will be held on Saturday March 2nd from 2 to 2:45 PM with a 2:45 memorial service at Bongarzone Funeral Home, 2400 Shafto Road, Tinton Falls, NJ 07712. In lieu of flowers, donations in Charlie’s memory may be made to the Earth Island Institute virtually at www.earthisland.org or by mail at 2150 Allston Way, Suite 460, Berkeley, California 94704. For online condolences, please visit Charlie’s memorial page at www.bongarzonefuneralhome.com

Charles Stanley Wilkinson Jr.

January 19, 1949 - February 8, 2024