Charles H. Purdum, Jr, 94, of Syracuse, passed away Dec. 7, 2014, at Miller’s Merry Manor in Syracuse.

He was born March 16, 1920, in Richmond, Va., to Charles Henry and Virginia Martin Purdum. On Oct. 3, 1942, he married Margaret Vanderveer, who died in 2000. He was a graduate of Milford High School and graduated with an electrical engineering degree from Virginia Military Institute in 1942. Upon graduation he entered the U.S Army and trained with the original 10th Mountain Division ski troops at Camp Hale, Colo.

During WWII, he rode with General Patton’s Third Army in Europe and also served in the Philippines and in Japan.  He remained in the Army reserves for 28 years, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. After the war he was President of Sturm and Dillard Gravel Company in Syracuse from 1946 to 1972. He served the community as a member of the Wawasee Community School Board during the construction of Wawasee High School in 1968. He was also a member of the Milford United Methodist Church, an active participant in the Kosciusko County Republican Party for many years, and a member of the Quiet Birdmen.

He is survived by daughters: Ann (Carlos) Bennett of Dayton, Ohio; Janet (Larry) Lant, Syracuse; and Amy (Scott) Williams, Jackson, Wyo.; four grandchildren: Christina (Tony) Handorf and Jeremy (Charity) Jackson, both of Ohio; Joanna (Michael) Prescott, Syracuse; Margaret Williams, Wyoming; four great-grandchildren; and a dear friend: Audra Shenk, Louisville, Ky.

Visitation will be from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10, at Eastlund Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 10, at the Eastlund Funeral Home. Burial will follow at the Milford cemetery with military honors.