Charles L. “Johnny” Ecker ’56, died May 13, 2001, after a long illness. He was a dear classmate of the editor as both pledged in 1952 and graduated from OWU in 1956. “Charlie” was one of the Ohio River boys from Gallipolis (along with Halliday, Thomas and Dailey), who found their way to Delaware in the 1950s. While at OWU Charlie majored in both political science and history, but his true love was music. A devoted Presbyterian , he was deeply involved in the life of the First Presbyterian Church of Gallipolis and participated in many of the church musical programs and frequently performed in recitals and musical plays in the Gallipolis area.
In the early 1990s, Charlie made one of his many visits to Dayton for a reunion with brothers Wright, Rich and Tatham. The scene was Dan Wright’s home in Eaton, and while leaning over Dan’s pool table, Charlie reeled off from memory the score from “The Music Man,” which he had performed a few years before. As he sang Robert Preston’s famous part “… and that rhymes with P and that stands for pool” … and “… did you ever see a jockey ride Dan Patch? well, I guess not!” Charlie brought joy to the children who were there … and left a memory forever for those of us who were there.
He was a member of the OWU chorus and studied under the late Professor Gordon Almstead. He starred for the Beta’s intramural football team, which won championships all 3 years when he played. After military service, Charlie returned to Gallipolis where among other careers, he coached his Gallia Academy high school football team to an undefeated 9-0 record and state recognition in 1970. He later coached the baseball team at Rio Grande College. Baseball was a great love for Charlie. The highlight of his life was attending Dream Week with the Cincinnati Reds and having his own Reds uniform and picture card to prove his prowess on the field. Charlie was a loyal Beta brother and will be sorely missed by all who knew him.
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