Art Charlesworth

 

ARTHUR CHARLESWORTH
JO ANN CHARLESWORTH
Math and Computer Science
University of Richmond
Richmond, Virginia 23173

804-289-8636

charlesworth@richmond.edu

College professor

Gables seems so long ago and far away! Many memories have faded for me, but I'm so grateful for the educational start it gave and to my Gables friends, who helped me survive adolescence intact. I most recall many friends in Dirigimus Hi-Y and the MYF. Also, the ideals instilled through those groups shaped me in a lasting way and planted the seeds for rich joy and contentment with life.

My life really started to click a year after graduation when I fell hopelessly in love with a girl named Jo Ann who has now been my wife for 36 years. After 18 years of marriage we finally had a child (!) ... Jonathan is now a rising senior in high school and (most parents probably feel this way, so forgive me) one of the greatest people I've known personally. (Don't tell him!) To my several friends from long ago who were on the Gables track team: Jonathan has "kept pace" ... yours are among the footsteps he's followed.

When Jonathan was 3 years old, Jo Ann suggested it would be nice if she had one day off a week from mothering. That began a decade of weekly hikes for Jonathan and "Daddy Art", mostly just day hikes in a nearby Virginia state park. We covered over 2000 miles, played silly guessing games, and invented long stories during our hikes. There can be deep joy in having a kid after your career has settled down and you have the time to love that is usually afforded only to grandparents. Jo Ann ("Mama Jo") also loves to hike. So, whenever we've had the chance in the past few years (not that often, due to cross country and track meets), the three of us go for a hike, a few times to someplace great like the Grand Canyon or the Rockies or the White Mountains, but mostly within Virginia. Although Jo Ann is a realtor by day, in her dreams she's hiking the entire Appalachian Trail.

I've spent 26 years so far here at the University of Richmond, perhaps the prettiest college in the country (some college guides have said that, in any case), teaching computer science and surrounded by terrific students and friendly colleagues. My Duke Ph.D. is in mathematics and later on I earned a computer science master's degree from the University of Virginia. Earlier I graduated from Stetson, which I loved so much, it's the reason I sought out a place like Richmond, since the schools are similar in many ways.

My email address is charlesworth@richmond.edu Would love to hear from friends from long ago! Although my nickname changed from "Happy" to "Art" when I started college, you folks can still call me Happy.

Best wishes to all!
Art Charlesworth