Swarthmore Friends Meeting

Swarthmore, Pennsylvania

Memorial Minute for Charles Pickett Cryer

Charles Pickett Cryer was born March 21, 1922, in Philadelphia.  He was graduated from Lansdowne High School where he played football and tennis, as well as the tuba in the band. He earned a mechanical engineering degree from Swarthmore College , where he was president of Kappa Sigma and played on the football team.  He later served in the U.S. Navy, earning three bronze stars as a Lt. Senior Grade and Captain of a Destroyer Escort.  

On April 26, 1956, he married Anne Ferguson in Bryn Mawr. He and Anne were married 53 years.  They have three children, Christopher Brinton Cryer, Ellen Ferguson Cryer Gilbert, and Margaret (Marnie) Magill Cryer Foody.   He joined Swarthmore Meeting in September, 1966. In a quiet way Chuck was proud of his Quaker ancestors. While not an overly-active member of Meeting, he helped repair electrical appliances for the Jumble Sale. Their daughter, Ellen, and Tom Gilbert were married at Swarthmore Meeting. He enjoyed cooking and was known for his good sense of humor. He enjoyed playing golf, being a member of the Rolling Green Golf Club and the Ozone Golf Club, where he served as president.

Charles was employed as a manufacturer’s representative for industrial equipment and operated Cryer Sales Company in Swarthmore for 45 years.  He was a source of inspiration to his co-workers. After a thirty-seven year residence in Swarthmore, he and Anne moved to Hershey’s Mill in West Chester , and later to White Horse Village, Newtown Square . He died at home at 87 years of age, June 2, 2009.

Prepared by Care and Counsel Committee and Mary and Paul Manglesdorf