Charles T McCarty

Charles T. McCarty was born February 4, 1940 in Silver City, New Mexico to Owen and Dona McCarty and grew up as a third-generation cattle rancher in Reserve, New Mexico.

In the summer of 1960, Charlie married his high school sweetheart, Thelma Brown of Clovis. They made their home in a small cabin on the Tularosa River, where they lived for six years before moving into Reserve. Charlie built their family home on the foundation of his grandparent’s home, where they raised their three children. As a young man he worked the ranch, built homes by trade and was part of the team who brought the first television system to the Reserve area. He serviced the television translator systems and made many trips to the top of TV Hill to assure the community had a television signal.

He was a well-known carpenter and home builder. He grew tired of driving to Albuquerque for supplies so next to their home he built himself a small shop to hold a bundle of lumber, tools and projects. The community learned of his building supply stash and began asking to purchase supplies from him. He saw a community need and in 1982 opened Charlie’s Supply, a small hardware store. The business quickly grew to multiple buildings, a vast variety of supplies and became a staple for the community. Ironically, he then spent the next 27 years traveling to Albuquerque to purchase supplies for the community.

Family and church were very important to Charlie. He was one of the first members of the Reserve Church of Christ, where he and Thelma raised their children in the faith. Attending church was a significant part of his routine. During times between full and part-time ministers, Charlie always made sure the doors were open – even if the sermon was shared via video tape. He took pride in being the building maintenance man and always made sure the fire was built and the building was warm and welcoming before the congregation arrived.

Charlie was very proud of his nine grandkids. He wanted each of them to spend time on the ranch where he taught all of them about horses, cattle, branding and maintenance. He was overjoyed when the grandkids became active in FFA, 4-H and the county fair. He attended their athletic events, dance performances, graduations, and encouraged them in all their activities. He loved long road trips and exploring and had a goal of taking each grandchild on a road trip. Michael, Mattie, Katherin and Rebekah have great memories of trips to Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone and all the states in between. Noah, Ashlynn and Dayna enjoyed exploring areas closer to home, visiting animal sanctuaries and museums. Matthew and Brently had many adventures on the ranch.

Charlie was a life-long member of the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau. He served as a board member of the Catron County chapter for over 50 years. Likewise, he was a life-long member of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, where he served on multiple committees and was an advocate for membership. He spent many nights and days in the surrounding mountains as part of the county’s search and rescue team. He searched for missing kids, hunters and lost adventurists. He took this roll very seriously and was proud of his involvement. The volunteer fire department was another passion. While other volunteers would do the heavy lifting and run the hoses, Charlie could maneuver the large equipment and knew the truck mechanics. Charlie’s love of history and legacy took him to the Arizona Historical Society and Catron County Historical Society, where he was most recently a board member. He was a fixture at meetings two to three times per week.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Thelma, son, Jesse (Rachel), their children, Michael (Ann), Mattie and Noah, son, Billy (Lori), their children, Katherin, Rebekah, Matthew and Brently, daughter, Paula (Greg), their children Ashlynn and Dayna, sister, Wendy McCarty (Chuck Leonard), brother, Vernon McCarty (Stephany) and many nieces, nephews and extended family.

Memorial contributions may be made to Reserve Church of Christ, P.O. Box 228, Reserve, NM 87830 or to your favorite community organization.