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Chuck Hoff and classmate, Msgr. Tim Murphy at Msgr. Murphy’s 80th birthday celebration.

Donor Profile: Charles A. Hoff ’58

After graduating from Central Catholic followed by the University of Oregon, Chuck A. Hoff ’58 spent his professional life working in and co-owning car dealerships in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho with his brother Kay while raising his family. Like most Central Catholic graduates, he has fond memories of his high school years, and we are fortunate that Chuck sat down with us to share some of them. We also learned about why he supports Central Catholic, and not just with cash gifts. Chuck and his wife, Karen, as members of our Legacy Society, had the foresight to plan ahead and include Central Catholic in their will.

CCM: Thanks for talking with us, Chuck! What motivates you to support Central Catholic High School?

CAH: My mom was a very strong Catholic and as the youngest of five kids, I was the apple of her eye, of course. [Laughs.] I was the only one she could afford to send on to a Catholic education, which she did, starting me in the fifth grade at St. John the Baptist in Milwaukie, Oregon, and then to Central Catholic in 1954. It was the fulfillment of a dream for her, but also a sad story as it involved my older brother Bud who was killed during the Korean War. He was 16 years older than me and in the Air Force; a bombardier/ navigator on a B-26. He had taken out a G.I. insurance policy and my mom, who’d received the proceeds of that policy, used them to pay for my tuition. Of course, at that time, Central Catholic was all boys and there were about 1,000 of us. We all needed the supervision that Central provided. That education set the pace for me going forward. I feel I owe Central Catholic a debt.

There was also that meaningful attachment to Monsignor Tim Murphy, my “Reg Room” classmate for four years. Tim never “put the arm on me” for donations, but he always maintained contact and kept me in touch with the CCHS spirit. He’s a catalyst for our class. My class organizes monthly luncheons which has been great because it helps me keep in touch.

CCM: What made you decide to support Central Catholic High through an estate gift?

CAH: Sainthood–for me–was highly improbable, but education was certainly a beacon to follow. In reflection, I came to recognize the giant impact education had on me and I developed a strong sense of payback–not only to CCHS but also for my grade school, St. John’s in Milwaukie, and my university in Eugene. Go Ducks! Those schools put me on a better path, a better path than I would have found on my own.

I encourage everyone to think about including Central Catholic in their estate plans. Thinking about it and planning ahead can make it less nerve-wracking to talk about what happens when you’re gone. How so? It gives you the reassurance that the people and causes closest to your heart are taken care of. If you’ve already included Central Catholic in your will, I’d encourage you to let the school know of your intentions.

CCM: That’s right, Chuck. Letting us know about your bequest intentions helps us with planning, plus it gives us an opportunity to say thank you. To date, we’ve received about $2M from estate gifts, some with no specific designations, but others designated for scholarships or tuition assistance. It’s a great honor for us to be the beneficiary of someone’s thoughtful planning and generosity!

Shifting gears a little bit, can you share a favorite memory or a funny story from when you were a student at Central Catholic?

CAH: Aahhh. Clearly it was my “Harry Houdini Act” in 1956. I was fortunate enough, at age 16, to have my own car, a 1954 Chevy Sedan. That sedan, a four-door, could cram 13 students at $1 per week for their ride to school. Boy, was I rolling in clover with that revenue–gas was only 29 cents per gallon! Occasionally, I ran a little bit late getting to school for the first bell roll-call and I thought Father Maloney, the Prefect of Discipline, would lose his mind trying to figure out how all these kids (my passengers) could be late for roll call when I wasn’t! The Houdini Act was as follows: My first period was a study hall in the main library (which combined three reg rooms with lots of noise and distractions–I felt sorry for that poor nun who was trying to supervise). I could give a whistle from the sidewalk below on Stark Street and my buddies, who were sworn to secrecy, would create a diversion. Then they would drop the venetian blind cords to me below and hoist me up in time for roll call. Eventually, Fr. Maloney solved the mystery and consequentially, took me under his wing as my permanent counselor. Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted.

CCM: Good one! Sounds like you were involved in some shenanigans and managed to evade detection, at least for a while. Was Monsignor Murphy involved in this plot?

CAH: He might have been, probably the part about the distraction, but he usually stayed on the straight and narrow. He wasn’t as far off the rails as the rest of us. [Laughs.] Anecdotally, there were two of us named Charles Hoff in the CCHS Class of 1958. Charles J. from All Saints and yours truly, Charles A. When the voice on the PA system requested the presence of Charles Hoff in Fr. Maloney’s Office, I would sit paralyzed in my desk until the ultimate clarification came. You can guess as to who was being called most often.

CCM: Hmmm. I think I can guess and it wasn’t Charles J. Hoff. Am I right? Tell us about one of your favorite Central Catholic teachers. Why were they your favorite? How did they inspire you?

CAH: There were a lot of great teachers, but without question, that person was Father Frank Campbell, USMC Retired. (In those days, almost all the teachers were priests or nuns.) Father Campbell was the master of the verbal “Pop Quiz” for his World History class. Woe to the individual who failed to read his assignments the night before. Fr. Campbell instinctively knew who that person might be. He called him to his feet, asked the pertinent question, and summarily embarrassed him in front of his classmates if they weren’t prepared. I’m not sure you would call this “inspiration,” but it certainly prepared me for the things to come in life. He made World History interesting and he was fearsome. But, a really good guy as well!

CCM: Character has always been an integral part of our school’s charism and in recent years, we have been infusing character education into the school through our curriculum, our sports and activities, our publications, and so on. This year (2022–2023) our virtues for focus are Compassion, Humility, Loyalty, and Self Discipline. Of those four virtues, which one resonates with you the most?

CAH: I have an opinion on all of them. I would hope that Compassion lurks somewhere in my heart and being. But not even my closest friends would ever accuse me of humility. Loyalty, yes, I do put loyalty high on my list of values. And definitely selfdiscipline; although the hardest to attain, it is what I consider the most important, euphemistically from my old Boy Scout Motto–Be Prepared. (I was on track to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout before girls and dating derailed that process. [Laughs.])

CCM: Thank you, Chuck, for your thoughtful, and entertaining comments. We are grateful for your generosity and commitment to helping Central Catholic continue its mission of providing a rigorous education, and developing critical thinkers, prepared for where their gifts meet the world.