Charles Lee Canfield

Charles Lee Canfield, “Charley,” passed peacefully away on February 9, 2023 in Dallas, Texas at the age of 93. A lifelong Texan, Charley was born on February 2, 1930 in Dallas, Texas to Metesser Lee Canfield and Halene Henning Canfield. He graduated from Walnut Hill Elementary School in 1942 and Hillcrest High School in 1946. After graduating from SMU in 1951 with a mechanical engineering degree and completing graduate work at MIT, Charley was inducted into the Army and stationed in Maryland for two years. Wanting to see the world after completing his time in the Army, Charley got on a boat to England, purchased a motor bike, and rode it throughout Europe and Egypt for the next four months before eventually settling back in Texas and beginning a career in the oil and gas industry. His love for Texas’s land was matched by his passion for its rich history.

Charley’s commitment to Texas Oil & Gas Corporation moved his family from Dallas to Corpus Christi, Midland, and back to Dallas, serving as District Manager, Vice President, Executive Vice President, and Senior Vice President. He later served as President of both Gillring Oil Company and Canfield Oil & Gas Corporation. He served on the board of the Dallas Petroleum Club, St. Philip’s School and Community Center, the Steering Committee of Jubilee Park and Community Center, and the Finance Advisory Committee for the City of University Park, where he was instrumental in the addition of reflective tape to the posts of UP stop signs. He also served on the St. Michael and All Angels Church Foundation Board, where he was a faithful member since 1946. In addition to belonging to a number of Oil & Gas Organizations, Charley was granted several patents in his life.

Charley loved to tease, and his most cherished object of these antics was his loving and good-humored wife of sixty-three years, Patricia Kitchen Canfield, whom he affectionately nicknamed Peter Pan. The two met on a plane where Pat was serving as a flight attendant, and the rest, they say, was history. Charley also loved making sure bets with Pat and even framed a few signed checks from her losses.

Growing up in the Great Depression made Charley a frugal and hardworking man. If his wife didn’t realize this before they got married, she certainly learned it on their honeymoon, which last-minute had to be spent in the charming swamp lands of DeQuincy, Louisiana where Charley was overseeing an oil well. His personal frugality was outmatched by his incredible generosity with his family and his love of quality time with all of the grandchildren. For decades, this meant annual vacations to Snowmass, Colorado and the Caribbean, so the whole family, split between Texas and Tennessee, could spend time all together each year.

We will dearly miss his wisdom. He was a curious learner and creative problem solver. He relished passing on what he learned, whether it was the proper method of making gunpowder or how to glue a paper tail to a house fly. One of his favorite mottos was, “When all else fails, read instructions,” and he continued his love of giving instructions via frequently published letters to the editors of the Dallas Morning News.

In addition to historical maps of Texas and a compelling collection of minerals, Charley imparts to his family and friends a legacy of good-humored teasing, strong convictions, generosity, and genuine faith. He is survived by his wife Pat Canfield, their two daughters and their spouses: Cindy and Jack Straton of Memphis, TN and Cammy and Mark Dickenson of Dallas, TX; and his six grandchildren and their spouses: John Straton, Rebekah and Max Bredthauer, Susannah and John Killen, John Dickenson and fianceé Sydney Hirschey, Charley Dickenson, and Melanie and Martin Proctor. He is preceded in death by his sisters Catherine Canfield Ritchie Holleman and Carolyn Canfield Lupton. The family gives their heartfelt thanks to his wonderful caregiver, Rosemary Walker. The memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 11, 2023 at 4:00PM at St. Michael and All Angels Church in Dallas, Texas. Prior to the memorial, there will be a private inurnment service in the Columbarium. As a yellow-polo-wearer for most of his life, Charley did not care for black, so we encourage you to eschew the color as we plan for this to be a cheerful service celebrating the long life a much-beloved man.

Memorials may be made to: St. Philip’s School & Community Center, Jubilee Park, St. Michael and All Angels Church or the charity of your choice.