Charles Shoaf, 84, of Vero Beach, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Dec. 9, 2014, in Vero Beach, after an extended illness.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Mary La Salle Shoaf of Vero Beach; daughters and sons-in-law Susan and Curtis Barton of Silver Spring, Md., and Sarah and Charles Cabot of Wayland, Mass.; and grandchildren Andrew and Kevin Barton and Charles and Hannah Cabot.
He was born in Roanoke, Va., to Cash Jefferson and Elizabeth Cure Shoaf. He attended Jefferson High School and graduated from the Virginia Military Institute, Class of 1952, receiving his commission as a second lieutenant in the US Air Force. He received his MS and PhD degrees from Purdue University and his JD from the Widener School of Law.
Shoaf served on the faculty of the Air Force Institute of Technology and retired from the Air Force with the rank of Captain. He began his career with DuPont as a research chemist in the Dacron Research Laboratory in Kinston, N.C. He then joined the legal department in Wilmington, Del., retiring as Senior Counsel in 1995.
A Memorial Service will be held at St. Augustine of Canterbury Church, Vero Beach, 475 43rd Avenue, Vero Beach, on Jan. 24, 2015, at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to the Maggy Bowman Scholarship Program of the Environmental Learning Center or to The Boys and Girls Club of Indian River County. An online guestbook is available at www.lowtherfuneralhome.com.
