Charles Kunkel

Burlington-Charles Edgar "Ed" Kunkel, 94, passed away at his home on Sunday, September 13, 2015. Ed was a career officer in the U.S. Army, retiring as a full colonel in 1970, having served on active duty for 28 years. He was a veteran of both World War II and Korea, serving in North Africa and Italy during WW II. He served as Post Commander of Camp Darby Livorno Italy, and his awards included the Legion of Merit and, from the Italian government, the Order of Merit. Ed was born and raised in Newport, Arkansas, to parents Karl Frederick Kunkel and Ida Elnora Johnson Kunkel. He received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Univ. of Arkansas, serving as Treasurer his senior year, and was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant through the ROTC program upon graduation. While in the U.S. Army, Ed earned an M.B.A. at Syracuse Univ. N.Y.. His military schooling included the Air War College Alabama and the Air Command and Staff School. He met his wife, Edna Gadomski, a Greenfield, Massachusetts native, while she served as an Army nurse in northern Italy. They were married for 68 years. Their two sons also served in the military on active duty. Following his retirement from the Army, Ed was a project manager for 15 years at Teledyne Continental Motors in Muskegon, Mich. Ed and Edna retired to Sanford, North Carolina in 1987. They moved to The Village at Brookwood in Burlington, North Carolina in 2013. Ed Kunkel is survived by his wife of 68 years, Edna Elizabeth Kunkel, son Karl Frederick Kunkel II, son Conrad Stephen Kunkel and daughter-in law Carol Fetzer Kunkel. The family will receive friends from 4-6 pm on Friday, September 18, 2015 at Lowe Funeral Home and Crematory. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Hospice and Palliative Care Center of Alamance-Caswell, 914 Chapel Hill Road, Burlington, NC 27215.