Hubert Charles Agee Jr., 81, of Bella Vista, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on October 2, surrounded by his family.
He was born on February 13, 1945, in Bentonville, Arkansas, to Hubert Charles Agee Sr. and Maxine Forbus. To describe Charles simply would be difficult, because he was never a simple man. He was strong-willed, courageous, fiercely independent, quick-witted, adventurous, and never afraid to speak his mind. He lived life on his own terms, and he left his mark on nearly everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.
Charles believed in leading from the front. After graduating from the University of Arkansas with a degree in Business, he received his commission through ROTC and entered the United States Army. He completed Ranger training, the United States Army Special Warfare School and its Military Assistance and Training Advisor course, followed by DLISC Vietnamese language training.
From 1969 to 1970, Charles was stationed in Pleiku, Vietnam, where he served as a Senior Advisor to the 22nd South Vietnamese Ranger Battalion. He was quickly promoted from Second Lieutenant to Captain. His service was recognized with the National Defense Service Medal, Ranger Tab, Vietnam Service Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Vietnam Ranger Badge, Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Silver Star, Vietnam Campaign Medal, and two Bronze Stars, one awarded with a V for Valor and an Oak Leaf Cluster.
The courage and discipline Charles developed as a Ranger never left him. “Rangers Lead the Way” was more than a motto to Charles. It was a way of life. He was a man who stepped forward, accepted challenges, took risks, and rarely backed away from anything.
When he returned home, that same determination followed him into everything he did. Charles went to work for his father, helping with the IGA grocery stores in Fayetteville, Arkansas, eventually becoming President of the company. During his time there, he received an award for Small Business of the Year from Senator Dale Bumpers and the House Committee on Small Businesses.
But Charles was not a man who could ever be defined by one career. After selling the IGA stores, he worked as a stockbroker with A.G. Edwards. He then entered the import-export business, founding Servicio International and maintaining an office in Mexico City for six years. He became a real estate developer, developing properties throughout Arkansas and along the coasts of Texas and Alabama. He also became involved in politics, consulting on and managing local, countywide, and statewide campaigns across Arkansas. He loved politics almost as much as he loved debating it — and anyone who knew Charles knows that was saying something.
Yet for all the businesses he built and all the places his life took him, the things that mattered most to Charles could not be measured by a résumé.
He loved being outdoors. He loved being on the water. He loved fishing. And he loved being surrounded by people he cared about.
Deer camp was one of those places where Charles seemed most at home. He treasured the time spent there with his closest friends who were family and his childhood friends. All of the numerous stories, laughter, arguments, and memories that came with them. And if there was a serious game of spades to be played, Charles was never one to pass it up.
He had an insatiable sense of adventure. He sailed throughout the Caribbean and the Bahamas and eventually earned his 50-ton Master’s license. He traveled the world chasing fish and adventure, from catching giant tarpon in Costa Rica to fishing for pike and walleye in Canada and countless places in between.
But perhaps what people will remember most about Charles will be the stories.
Charles had a story for almost everything. His life was filled with adventures that sounded too unbelievable to have actually happened, yet somehow, they did. He could hold a room with a story, make people laugh with a perfectly timed comment, or turn a simple conversation into a debate that could last for hours. And just when you thought you had heard them all, there was another one.
Those stories will live on because the people who knew Charles will keep telling them.
His legacy is not only in the businesses he built, the places he traveled, the military service he gave his country, or the many lives he influenced. His legacy is in the people he loved, the friendships he kept for decades, the lessons he taught — sometimes intentionally and sometimes simply by example — and the memories he created along the way.
Charles was not perfect, and he never claimed to be. He was simply Charles: strong, stubborn, funny, fearless, opinionated, generous in his own way, and always ready for the next adventure. He lived a life that was unmistakably his.
Most importantly, he was a father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He is survived by his son, Slader Agee, and his wife, Michelle; his daughter, Mary Agee-Harris, and her husband, Aaron; four grandchildren Tiffany Makay and her husband, Joe Makay, Avalon Harris, and Alucard Harris; and two great-grandchildren Avery Case and Payton Makay.
He was preceded in death by his father, Hubert Charles Agee Sr.; his mother, Maxine Forbus Drake; and his son, Jeremiah Agee.
There will be an emptiness where Charles once stood, and there will be moments when his family and friends wish they could hear his voice, his laugh, or one more of those stories. But there will also be laughter when someone tells a Charles story for the hundredth time. There will be memories around a card table, at deer camp, on the water, and wherever friends and family gather to remember him.
And somewhere in those stories, Charles will still be leading the way.
Visitation will be held on Friday November 6 from 5-7 p.m. at Moore’s Funeral Home in Fayetteville, Arkansas. A Celebration of Life will be held on November 7 at 11 a.m. at Moore’s Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Jeremiah Agee Scholarship Fund. Donations may be sent to:
Prairie Grove High School
500 Cole Drive
Prairie Grove, AR 72753