Charles Lee
Charles “Chuck” Lee passed away on Friday, May 13, after a brief battle with cancer. Born February 15, 1940, Mr. Lee was raised on a farm in Wexford, PA. He graduated from Pittsburgh’s Perry High School in 1957 where he met his wife of 63 years, Ilda Gerhardt.
Mr. Lee took great pride in his family, especially his children and grandchildren. Known to his family as “Pappy,” he is survived by his wife, five children, their spouses and 16 grandchildren. He was generous with his affection for and unwavering support of young people and their careers.
Mr. Lee received his bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from Cornell University, where he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta and the Big Red football team. After receiving an MBA with distinction from Harvard, he returned to Pittsburgh to work in finance for the United States Steel Corporation in the firm’s business research group.
Following his time at U.S. Steel, Mr. Lee became a senior financial officer for the Penn Central Company and was involved in managing the company’s non-railroad assets, including its recreation, energy and real estate holdings.
After leaving Penn Central, Mr. Lee became Chief Financial Officer of Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. While at Columbia, he played a key role in the sale of the firm to The Coca Cola Company.
In 1983, Mr. Lee joined GTE Corporation as senior vice president of finance and in 1986, was named senior vice president of finance and planning. He was elected president and director in December 1988 and was elected chairman of the board and CEO in 1992. In 2000, GTE merged with Bell Atlantic to form Verizon Communications, Inc. Mr. Lee served as chairman of the board and co-chief executive officer of Verizon from June 2000 through March 2002 and served as non-executive chairman of the board from April 2002 to December 2003.
Mr. Lee served on the Boards of Directors for DIRECTV, Marathon Oil Corporation, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation, The Procter & Gamble Company, The Travelers Companies, Inc., United Technologies Corporation, U.S. Steel and Verizon. Additionally, he served on the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
Mr. Lee was also a member of the Business Roundtable, The Business Council, the Financial Executives Institute and the Advisory Committee to the President’s Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection. He also served for several years as a Trustee Emeritus and Presidential Councilor of Cornell University and as a member of the Board of Fellows of the Weill Cornell Medical College.
Mr. Lee was passionate about golf and was a member of the Stanwich Club, a founding member of GlenArbor Golf Club and a former president of the Blind Brook Club. He especially enjoyed taking his grandchildren to the course to play a round and share his love of the game.
A memorial service will be held on Thursday, May 26, at 1 p.m. at Second Congregational Church in Greenwich, Connecticut. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made for cancer research to Weill Cornell Medicine, 1300 York Avenue, Box 314, New York, NY 10065.