<p>
<em>Charles William Lenfest</em> was born in Caldwell, ID, and went to West Point with a keen mind, an easy temperament, and a love of the outdoors. At the Academy he excelled in academics but also spent many hours coach­ing classmates who needed help in math.</p>
<p>
Chuck was an accomplished horseman, a member of the boxing team, and a crack shot. He ably represented H Company as its intramural athletic representative but still had time to fish and camp in the hills around West Point. At a campfire, he was a great yarn spinner. Above all, however, Chuck was ad­mired and respected by his classmates.</p>
<p>
Chuck chose the Air Corps at graduation and became an outstanding fighter pilot, flying P-47’s and P-51’s in the Eighth Air Force Fighter Command, based in England in World War II. During two tours of duty he became a fighter ace. As a pilot, he was fearless and had a steadiness of character and good judgment.</p>
<p>
During his second tour, Chuck attempt­ed to rescue his downed wing man, but they both were captured. Chuck spent nine months in a German POW camp, eventually escaping and making his way back to the al­lied lines. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with three oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with six oak leaf clusters, the Croix de Guerre with Silver Star, the Polish Cross of Valor, and the Polish Home Army Cross.</p>
<p>
Chuck returned home to Boise, his wife Lorie, and his one-year-old daughter Linda. Lorie and Chuck had been high school sweethearts and were married on graduation day in the Old Cadet Chapel at West Point. The couple later had three more children: Nanette, Diane, and Charles, III, whom they dearly loved and enjoyed.</p>
<p>
After the war, Chuck was assigned to flying duty, a year of graduate study at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and then a three-year tour in the Department of Mechanics at West Point. Subsequently, he attended the Air Force Command and Staff College.</p>
<p>
In 1952, Chuck took command of the 309th Strategic Fighter Squadron at Turner AFB in Albany, GA, and successfully led his squadron in the first Pacific Ocean crossing by jet fighter aircraft. It was an extremely dif­ficult mission that required in-flight refueling and had never before been accomplished by single engine aircraft. He and his unit received the Distinguished Unit Citation Emblem and the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award.</p>
<p>
The Lenfest “kids” will never forget the tour of duty in Ankara, Turkey, and the adventure that followed. At the end of that assignment, Chuck decided that, instead of saving for “more important things,” the fam­ily would spend a month touring the great capitals of Europe, including Athens, Paris, Rome, and London. They also scheduled a week at the R&R facility in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, exploring these towns from a horse-drawn carriage, with Chuck Jr. sitting up front with the driver. For the children, this was an unforgettable experi­ence and gave them a lifelong love of history and travel.</p>
<p>
Tours of duty followed at Air Force Headquarters for Research and Development; graduation from the Air Force War College; Headquarters, U.S. Air Force, in the Plans Division; and the Plans Division of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. For his service with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he was awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal.</p>
<p>
In 1963, Chuck was assigned to Headquarters, Pacific Air Force Command, where he served as Director of Plans and was awarded the Legion of Merit. In 1966, he served as Deputy Director for Force Development, U.S. Air Force Headquarters, and was promoted to brigadier general. Chuck retired from the Air Force in 1969.</p>
<p>
After retirement, with Lorie’s and the children’s expectations that “Dad can do any­thing,” Chuck designed and built, by hand, a large, three-story A-frame home near the Air Force Academy. The camping, fishing, ski­ing, and holidays with family and friends in Colorado made for unforgettable times.</p>
<p>
Long, cold winters finally took Chuck and Lorie to Arizona in 1982, where they enjoyed their pool (another of Chuck’s con­struction projects), the sun, and motor trips in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. Memorable days were spent visiting “the children,” by then grown and spread from Honolulu to Geneva, Switzerland.</p>
<p>
In 1994, Chuck and Lorie returned to Boise. He died after a severe illness on 9 Aug 2006 and was interred at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery in Boise on 14 Aug 2006, after a beautiful military burial service, at­tended by his family and friends.</p>
<p>
Chuck was a modest man with many talents, friends, and a loving family: his wife, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchil­dren. He lived a life of duty and honor and served his country well for three decades. He was our hero.</p>
<p>
—<em>L.B.L. and a classmate</em></p>