Volunteer Spotlight: Charlie C.

Charlie (right) appears with his wife, Jean, during a 2019 Halloween trolley event.

If you rode the Issaquah Valley Trolley during our 2026 season—or ever—it’s Charlie, or “Chuck” (among his various names) who you can thank for making it go.

Charlie’s father was a tool and die maker whose shop was in their home garage, so he was around machines for most of his childhood. When he got his first car in high school—a 1937 Ford coupe that was then already a couple decades old—it was the beginning of a lifelong relationship with things that move.

As a teen, Charlie rode the streetcar system in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and remembers perfectly the distinctive sound that their braking systems’ air compressors made. He was delighted to hear that same sound come alive when the Issaquah Valley Trolley’s #519 car made its debut in 2012.

After it was discovered that the original power car was inadequate, Charlie designed the trailing power car that supplies electricity to the #519 today. It’s a feat he calls “the purest engineering I’ve ever done.” Charlie’s power car—which is based on a large Kohler power generator unit—was assembled by a volunteer in Yakima following his plans and using parts that came from all over the country. Charlie names those early days of engineering and collaboration as his fondest memory of the trolley.

“A regular Boeing guy” in his professional life, Charlie trained Boeing's customer airline mechanics on the 737, 747, and 767 engine and fuel systems. And during our 2026 trolley season, that experience was on full display as he trained several new volunteer mechanics on the inner (and under) workings of our #519 trolley car, passing on the kind of knowledge and experience you won’t find in its technical manuals.

He and his wife Jean marvel at how Issaquah has managed to keep its historic downtown core, and wonder how Issaquah will look in another 20 years. “Issaquah is an interesting town,” Charlie says. “It’s gonna change quite a bit, and we have to savor what we have right now.” He’s grateful that we’re still a small enough town that, when newcomers come to the Issaquah Depot looking to understand its past, we can still afford the attention to answer them.

Asked about how it feels to see the trolley running again this year, Charlie simply says: “Good. It makes me smile.” And the faces on our riders this season wholeheartedly agree.

Charlie shows two other volunteers the interior of the trolley's power car.