CHARLES "CHARLIE" COFFMAN VENABLE, JR., 84, passed away peacefully on June 16, 2026, just eight days before his 85th birthday. He was born in Dallas on June 24, 1941, the eldest of three children - two sons and one daughter - of Ona Lou and Charles C. Venable Sr. At age 11, Charlie and his younger siblings were lovingly raised by his devoted aunt, Mildred Mayfield Hicks, and his uncle, William Thomas Hicks. Charlie was a beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, nephew, friend, coach, neighbor, and dog lover. Known to longtime friends as "Jimmy," Charlie cherished his family, friends, and neighbors, as well as his own dogs and many others in his community.
Charlie graduated from Wilmer-Hutchins High School in South Dallas, where he met Sharon Francis Harwell, his beloved wife of 61 years. They were high school sweethearts, and their first date was at a cast party after performing together in a school play. From then on, they were inseparable. Two years later, they married and remained devoted to each other throughout their lives. Sharon's sister, Charlotte, later married Charlie's best friend, Clarence. While courting the sisters, Charlie and Clarence often walked four miles from Wilmer to a phone booth in Hutchins to avoid long-distance charges between the two towns. For a nickel, they could talk as long as they liked, taking turns every 15 minutes before walking home along the railroad tracks, the faster route.
A year after their wedding, Sharon joined Charlie in Hawaii with their newborn son while he served in the United States Marine Corps, stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay. Sharon's first job was at the PX, and their combined income in those early years of marriage was only a few hundred dollars per month. They always remembered their humble beginnings as they rose to great success and prosperity over the next half-century.
After three years in the Marines, Charlie was honorably discharged and began working part-time for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a role that later became a full-time career spanning more than 40 years.
When his son, James Lynn, was seven, Charlie took him to a soccer match at Arlington Stadium. Lynn was enthralled by the idea of playing soccer. Because there was no soccer team in his district, Charlie helped recruit young players, using a mimeograph machine to produce promotional fliers, and he stepped in as head coach, even though he knew very little about the game. He began coaching a team of 15 scrappy players who would go on to win two national championships under his leadership. One year, Charlie bought a pickup truck, installed wooden benches in the truck bed, and drove the entire Oak Cliff Roadrunners soccer team from Dallas to Toronto for an international competition. Charlie paid for that trip and others, ensuring that player fees, jerseys, equipment, food, and lodging were covered for every player.
The Roadrunners stayed together for 23 years, with several players, including Lynn, competing at the college level for the UNT Mean Green and for the professional soccer club FC Dallas. Many of Charlie's players have become soccer coaches for their own sons and daughters. Charlie was a founding member of the Oak Cliff Junior Soccer League, which later became the Oak Cliff Soccer Association. For two years, he served as head of the Men's Soccer Commission for the State of Texas.
The Venables were an accomplished family beyond soccer. Sharon was a corporate executive with advanced academic degrees and was recognized as a community leader, earning philanthropic accolades. Together, Sharon and Charlie balanced dual careers and extensive charitable work as parents, along with multiple high-performing activities with their children, all with discipline and finesse. Their daughter, Erin, is a classically trained dancer who performed as a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader and the Kilgore Rangerettes.
After seeing a demonstration of Agility at a dog show, Charlie became interested in competing and began training with his beloved Cocker Spaniel, Andre. What started as a hobby became a passion, marked by numerous Agility awards at Dog Sport competitions over 15 years. His champion dogs were Andre, Jackie, and DeeDee.
Charlie's love for dogs grew into caring for pets when friends and neighbors were out of town. Because they insisted on paying him, he charged $10 a day and donated half the proceeds to dog rescue organizations. Most of his own dogs over the years were rescues, including Piper, Zulu, Jackie, Taylor, Brownie, and Shiloh.
Charlie lived in a close-knit community in the Northwood Hills neighborhood of Dallas. His neighborhood was adjacent to a park with sprawling meadows along the meandering White Rock Creek, and the expansive field was often a gathering place for neighbors and their dogs. Charlie knew every four-legged creature that walked the park's paths and was regarded by neighbors as a guardian and ambassador of goodwill. Neighbors said Charlie gave that small corner of the world continuity, kindness, character, and plenty of laughter.
Charlie remained remarkably active at 84 until his pancreatic cancer diagnosis four months before his passing. He went to the gym, did yardwork, decorated the house for Christmas, attended weekly social breakfasts, and walked his dogs—or someone else's—every day. In the nearby field, he tended to a small nature reserve with a bench and trees he had planted himself, creating a memorial garden where grieving owners could remember their beloved pets.
Among his accomplishments, Charlie was most proud to be Papa to his cherished grandchildren, Leah and Killian. He celebrated their unique talents and was especially proud of Killian's work as a Boston-based business consultant and of Leah's teaching of third-grade students and coaching in club volleyball in Frisco, Texas.
Charlie was preceded in death by his dear Sharon, his aunt and uncle, his mother, and his brother Donald "Donnie" Venable. He is survived by his son, James Lynn Venable (Kris), of Carrollton; his daughter, Erin Green (Shannon), of Richardson; his grandchildren, Killian Green of Boston and Leah Venable of Plano; by his sister Sharon Litke (Art) of DeSoto; his brother-in-law and best friend, Clarence Robertson, of Richardson; and his cousins, nieces, and nephews.


We would like to invite Charlie's family, friends, and neighbors to join us for a casual Celebration of Life.

Rather than a formal service, we're opening Charlie's home for an afternoon of swapping stories, sharing memories and laughter, and friendship—celebrating the connections that meant so much to him and the things Charlie enjoyed most.

This will be a come-and-go event with no official program. We simply want to create an opportunity for everyone whose life was touched by Charlie to gather, reconnect, and celebrate a life well lived.

We hope you'll join us, share a memory, and help us honor Charlie in the way he would have loved most—surrounded by family, friends, and good conversation.

The Celebration of Life will be held at Charlie's house on Saturday, August 8, 2026, between 12:00N and 2:00PM.

As an expression of sympathy, memorial donations may be made to:
SPCA of Texas
http://spca.org
2400 Lone Star Dr., Dallas, TX 75252
Please note: "Dedicate this donation to Charlie Venable."