Charles Shumaker Funeral

Greeting:

Good afternoon. My name is Chad Wilham, and I serve as Pastor-Teacher here at Heritage Church. Thank you for being here today as we remember Charles, grieve with his family, and give thanks for the eternal life he now enjoys with Christ.

Obituary:

Charles G. Shumaker, 71, of Winchester, Virginia, passed away peacefully on April 28, 2026, at Winchester Medical Center Inpatient Care. Born on November 3, 1954, in Winchester, Virginia, he was the son of Margaret Kerns Combs and the late Randolph Shumaker.

Charles was a hardworking and respected businessman who owned and operated Charles Shumaker Carpet and Vinyl Installation for many years. Known throughout the flooring industry as a skilled “Floor Mechanic,” he took great pride in his work and the relationships he built over the years.

A faithful member of Heritage Baptist Church, Charles was a devoted family man who loved spending time with those closest to him. He was an avid hunter and fisherman who enjoyed the outdoors, but nothing brought him more joy than being with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He is survived by his loving wife of 53 years, Donna G. Shumaker, whom he married on January 27, 1973, in Winchester, Virginia; his daughter, Melissa Diane Spencer (Joseph Singer); his mother, Margaret Kerns Combs; sisters, Patsy, Barbara, Linda, Cathy, Joanne, and Angie; brother, Randolph “Randy”; six grandchildren, Samantha, Brian, Kirsten, Taylor, Phillip “Buddy” and Landyn; eleven great-grandchildren, Camden, Maren, Kenslee, David, Logan, Emmalee, Autumn, Lucas, Jaxon, Levi, and one on the way; and his beloved grand dog, Wesley George.

In addition to his father, he was preceded in death by his daughter, Amber Michelle Shumaker, who passed away on November 14, 2001.

Opening Prayer

Father,

We gather today with sorrow and gratitude. Thank You for the life of Charles. Thank You for the years You gave him, for the love he shared with Donna, his children, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren, and all who knew him.

Comfort this family today. Give them strength in their grief. Give them peace in the days ahead. Through Your Word, point our hearts to Jesus Christ, who died and rose again, and who gives eternal life to all who believe in Him.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Introduction:

Earlier this week I sat with Donna and Missy to plan todays service and to reminisce and at the close of our time together their around the dining room table I asked Donna,

“If Charles could give one last message to his family and friends who are going to be there on Thursday, what do you think he would say?”

Those words came in three parts:

1. Love each other.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son,…

That is a part of Charles favorite verse of scripture because it tells of God’s great love for sinful human beings. A love so great, that he sent his only Son to live, die and be resurrected on their behalf thereby providing the way to eternal life for all who believe on him.

This is what we call the Gospel and charles belived it with all his heart, soul, and mind.

It’s Because he knew the love of Christ, I believe he would want his family to love each other.

Charles was one of a kind man. Real. Plainspoken. Quiet at times. Stubborn at others. Genuine. Quick witted.

Any time I’d ask “How you feeling Charles? He’d reply “With my fingers.” with a sly grin on his face.

But perhaps the most common word I’ve heard to describe Charles is “Love.”

And that love would take on many forms.

A.) He loved fiercely

Missy shared a story with me of looking through her Daddy and Mama’s wedding album as a little girl and seeing the way in which they looked at each other. Charles with love in his eyes and smiling so big you could almost count all his teeth and recognizing that they still looked at each other that way at home every day.

Mrs. Donna know that Charles loved you. Even when “you weren’t working well together any more” as he recently told you.

And we all know you loved him, it has been so evident in your care of him all these years in his battle with parkinsons.

B.) He loved Protectively

Missy also told of another time when Charles jumped an 8-foot fence like a super heroto get to her when she fell off a swing at a park as a little girl.

He was a daddy who could do anything, knew everything, could fix anything (except walkers),

C.) He loved quietly and gently

Through hunting trips and fishing outings

That’s where his quiet love was most active because “he didnt want you to scare the fish away.”

I’m not sure anyone could sum up the love Charles had for his family better than his great grandson Camden:

“He was one of the sweetest and kindest men I knew. He took me fishing and he did so much with me. I only have good memories with him.”

A man may leave behind many things, but to have a great-grandchild say, “I only have good memories with him,” is a mercy from God.

In the months and years ahead those of you who knew Charles best need to pass on your PeePaws legacy to those who will not have memories of him like you do.

Tell them the stories.

Show them the pictures.

Tell them he worked with his hands and laid carpet all over the valley.

Tell them he helped build this every building your sitting in.

Tell them how hard he worked to make sure these doors stayed open during leaner times.

Come easter tell them how much he loved black jelly beans.

Tell them how he loved Memaw for 53 years.

But, most importantly, tell them how much he loved Jesus because Jesus first loved him.

Application:

Family, love each other.

Check on each other.

Stay close.

Make the phone call.

Sit at the table.

Tell the stories.

Forgive what needs to be forgiven.

Don’t wait until another funeral to say what needs to be said.

Family love like Charles had for you is a gift, but it cannot conquer sin and death. Only the love of Christ can do that.

That is why John 3:16 mattered to Charles so much.

Charles loved you the way in which he did, because Christ loved him. His love for you was a Christ-like love. And there would be no better way to reciprocate that love than to give your life to the savior that Charles so adored.

2. Find each other again.

Times of loss and grief often force us to ask questions like:

Will I see him again?

Is there hope beyond this?

Is death the end?

All of those questions can be answered in and because of Jesus.

John 3:16 ESV

…that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

That promise is where our hope has to rest today.

A.) Charles believed in Christ.

He came to faith as a young man around 1971 while talking with Pastor Kinsey at Calvary Baptist Church in Winchester.

Then through time and circumstance he met Pastor Johnny Brewer and started to attend church on Sundays at Stines Chapel, which eventually moved here.

Charles had a history with this church. His hands helped build this building. He was there from the beginning of Landmark Chapel and Heritage.

But Charles’s hope was Jesus Christ.

He wasn’t perfect. None of us are.

He didn’t earn heaven by good deeds. None of us can.

His hope was in the Savior who came to save sinners.

Luke 19:10 ESV

10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

That is what Christ did for Charles.

Christ found him.

Christ saved him.

Christ kept him.

And family, Christ is the only One who can truly help you find each other again.

He can bring you to Charles again one day by bringing you to Himself today. But He can also help you find each other now. He can soften what grief hardens. He can heal what sin has wounded. He can humble pride, loosen bitterness, restore love, and draw a family back toward one another.

Parkinsons took much from Charles. His strength, self sufficiency, the ability to hunt and fish. It kept him from places and people he loved, including his ability to attend church.

But it did not take Christ from him. And it did not take Charles from Christ.

And if you want to find your Peepaw again, you must be found in the same Savior.

Jesus died for sinners. He rose from the dead. He offers eternal life. Whoever believes in Him will not perish.

That word “whoever” is precious.

The religious person who has never truly trusted Christ can come.

The person far from God can come.

The person carrying guilt and regret can come.

The person who wonders if God could save someone like them can come.

The person who has been away from church for years can come.

The person who knows the words but has never been born again can come.

Remember Charles. Tell the stories. Remember the man he was.

But do not put your hope in memory. Put your hope in Christ.

Charles was found by Christ. Charles was saved by Christ. Charles is kept by Christ.

3. Always be together.

That’s a hard thing to say at a funeral, because death is the great separator.

It leaves an empty chair.

It leaves a quiet house.

It leaves a familiar place that feels different now.

It leaves stories you wish you could hear one more time.

Missy you’re going to feel that as you head to your chemo appointments.

Samantha, Brian, Kirsten, Taylor, “Buddy” and Landyn you’re going to feel that when you just want to hear your PeePaws voice again.

The great grandchildren are going to feel that.

Mrs. Donna you are going to feel that perhaps more than anyone else.

Maybe when Apple Blossom rolls around again.

Or when one of the little ones does something and someone thinks, “Charles would have loved that.”

Grief is love feeling the pain of separation.

Charles desired for his family to all be together.

So honor that desire. Don’t let Charles passing push you apart. Don’t let busyness scatter you. Don’t let pride divide you. Don’t let old wounds sit untouched forever. Love one another. Forgive one another. Show up for one another.

Especially show up for Donna.

Grief doesn’t end when the service ends. Some of the hardest days will come after everyone else returns to normal.

Call her. Sit with her. Remember with her. Let her talk. Let her cry. Let her laugh. Let her tell the same stories over and over again.

Samantha sent me an email sharing some memories of Charles and she ended it by saying

“He was always there for me, and I always knew I could count on him.”

Family, carry that forward. Be that for each other. Be the kind of family where people know they are not alone, where they know they can call, where they know someone will show up. Be together.

John 3:17 ESV

17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

God sent His Son to save. Everyone saved through Christ receives eternal life.

Charles is now with Christ. Parkinson’s, weakness, and pain does not follow him there. The limits of a failing body do not follow him there.

The Bible says for the believer, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Charles is with the Savior who loved him, found him, saved him, and kept him.

One day, Jesus will raise the dead. One day, every believer will be made whole. One day, death itself will be destroyed. One day, all who belong to Christ will be gathered with Him forever.

Only Jesus can make “always” last forever.

Every earthly gathering comes to an end. Every family table eventually has empty seats.

But those who belong to Christ have eternal life. They will be with Him forever, and because they are with Him forever, they will be with one another in Him forever.

Melissa you told me that when you watched your Dad and mom lay your sister to rest, that you realized in that moment, they were not superheroes. That it was Jesus in their hearts and lives that sustained and guided them.

That his love carried them and took over for them in their weakness.

He is still the only power strong enough for a day like today.

Conclusion:

So hear Charles’s message. Love each other. Find each other again. Always be together.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

If you do not know Christ, come to Him as a sinner in need of grace. Turn from your sin. Trust Jesus Christ. Rest your hope in Him. He saves.

That is the hope Charles had and that is the hope every one of us needs today.

I wrote a poem in memory of Charles that I think sums everything up.

Charles knew the love of Jesus, The Savior’s gift of grace; “For God so loved the world,” he heard, And trusted Christ by faith.

He loved in quiet, steady ways, Not polished, loud, or grand; A husband, father, faithful friend, A worker with his hands.

He cast his line, he walked the woods, He labored through the years; His hands helped build a gathering place, For worship, Word, and prayer.

He held his family close in heart, Protected what was his; And smiled upon the little ones, His joy and heritage.

Though sickness narrowed earthly days, And strength began to fade; It could not steal the Christ he loved, Or all the Lord had made.

So love each other as he said, Stay close through joy and pain; And if you long to meet again, Be found in Jesus’ name.

For Charles is now with Christ his Lord, Where pain and weakness cease; Kept by the Savior who gave His Son, And brought him home in peace.

Committal

Today, we commit Charles’s body to the care of God, and we entrust his soul to the mercy and promise of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We do so in the sure and certain hope of the resurrection, looking to the day when Christ will make all things new, when death shall be no more, when mourning and crying and pain shall be gone, and when all who belong to Christ will be gathered in His presence forever.

Final Prayer

Father,

Thank You for the life of Charles. Thank You for the years You gave him. Thank You for the memories this family carries. Thank You for his love for Donna, his children, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren, and the little one still on the way.

Thank You for the work of his hands, his quiet strength, his honest and genuine spirit, his love for this church, and most of all, the faith he had in Jesus Christ.

Comfort Donna in the days ahead. Comfort this family. Help them love one another. Help them stay close. Help them forgive where forgiveness is needed, encourage where encouragement is needed, and care for one another in the days to come.

If anyone here does not know Christ, draw them to Yourself. Show them their need. Show them the Savior. Bring them to repentance and faith.

We ask for Your comfort, peace, and grace.

In Jesus’ name, amen.