by Kevin Strom, WB4AIO
MY GREAT FRIEND, Chuck, WA4GGL, has died. He was one of the true great wits of 75 meter AM. I first contacted him in 1978, 48 years ago. We operated for years both in the AM window around 3870-3885 kHz, and also down lower in the band, around 3785, on occasion. Sometimes he’d show up in the 40 meter AM window, too, up around 7290 kHz. He owned a Collins KW-1, a BC-610 (that he bought from me in ʹ78) a Johnson 500, and a Johnson Valiant, among many other rigs — and he had some older Kenwood SSB rigs that he used sometimes, too. Some of his on-air friends included WA3FLE, K8VWX, N3YA (formerly N3BQW), W3RMD, W3OW (formerly W3YAM), W3GL, KA3LPC, WA3PUN, WQ3S (formerly W3REZ), W3CIC, N3CWM, WA4WRZ, W3NP, WB4ZVR, and many others. He was born on Halloween, 1927.
Most of the following obituary was written by his younger friend Wendy, who very kindly stepped in to help him in recent years when the town of Dahlgren, Virginia, during a dispute over his un-maintained yard and some minor fire damage to his house, forbade him to live in his own home and cut off the electricity to it. If it hadn’t been for Wendy, Chuck might have died. I’ll put my own comments in brackets.
Charles Joseph Hershfield, Jr., a brilliant engineer, lifelong learner, and unapologetic original, passed away peacefully on January 21, 2026, at the age of 98.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Texas, Charles was a man of formidable intellect and deep curiosity. He served honorably in the United States Army during World War II as an Instrument Repairman in Fire Control and was awarded the World War II Victory Medal. [Chuck, after deep and serious consideration, would later come to believe that America had fought on the wrong side in World War 2 and that this was the source of most of America’s post-war decline. He became a supporter of George Lincoln Rockwell and William Luther Pierce and their patriotic efforts. — WB4AIO]
Following his military service, Charles pursued higher education with determination and distinction. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of New Mexico, a Bachelor of Science in Physics, and a Master of Arts in Mathematics from the University of Texas. His professional career spanned decades at the Naval Surface Weapons Center in Dahlgren, Virginia, where he worked as a mathematician, physicist, and electronics engineer on complex digital control systems and strategic defense projects. His mind never stopped working.
Charles was fearless in thought and speech — often outspoken, sometimes controversial, and consistently hilarious. He fought hard for his beliefs and delighted in challenging hypocrisy wherever he found it. Five times, he ran as a candidate for Mayor of Colonial Beach, Virginia — not so much to win office as to stage witty, educational campaigns calling attention to corruption and governmental absurdities. [One year, his campaign slogan was “Free Love and Nickel Beer,” and another year it was “Vote for Chuck — He’s Not Black!” — WB4AIO]
In keeping with his independent spirit, Charles famously refused to mow his lawn, preferring instead to let it return naturally to a wooded state. When local authorities objected, he outmaneuvered them by having his yard officially designated a protected Wild Area by an environmental organization.
A ham radio enthusiast for more than 60 years, Charles held a Extra class amateur license and found lifelong joy in radio communication. Never content with convention, he delighted in bending the radio rules for humor. Rather than using standard phonetics for his callsign, WA4GGL, he would announce himself as “WA4 G Gordon Liddy.” His CQ calls were legendary — ranging from “calling the Martian Battle Fleet” (“Please bring more Mars bars”) to playful summons directed exclusively to famous actresses and singers. “CQ Pat Benatar, CQ Pat Benatar. Pat Benatar ONLY please.” He even launched a tongue-in-cheek campaign urging the FCC to stop issuing amateur radio licenses to men until women made up 50% of operators. [He stated that these newly licensed young ladies could be mentored by existing ham operators by having them act as volunteer “Radio Page Girls” to help around the older hams’ shacks! — WB4AIO]
He was also a proud member of the National Rifle Association. Beyond his professional and technical pursuits, Charles loved swimming [even in his 80s], listening to music, and — true to form — browsing the aisles of Goodwill and other thrift stores [almost] daily. He was an avid pet lover who took in many dogs over the years, ultimately finding deep companionship and joy with his beloved “puppy-dog,” Coopy.
His voice mail messages were often performances in themselves, featuring invented names or the line, “Ground Control to Major Tom.” He kept people guessing, smiling, and thinking. Known for his sharp wit and dry humor, Charles had a way of delivering insight with a twinkle in his eye. He was thoughtful, private, kind, endlessly interesting — and entirely unforgettable.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Mercedes Hershfield; and his sister, Barbara McKissack Cleaveland.
He is survived by nephews and nieces, Kathy McKissack Gilbride, Becky McKissack Birmingham, Diane McKissack Smith and husband Mike, Michael McKissack and wife Jackie, and Kelly McKissack and wife Deborah, all from Texas.
He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered.
A graveside service was held at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at Culpeper [Virginia] National Cemetery.
Chuck was of Dutch, German, English, and French ancestry. He spent most of his childhood in Texas and missed the west, though he stayed in Virginia after he retired from the Naval Surface Weapons Center in Dahlgren.
Chuck was once friends with Irb, W2VJZ (another memorable 75 meter AM character), but at one point Irb was being relentlessly jammed (by someone who repeatedly sent “VJZ is gay” in CW on top of his signal), and Irb became convinced that Chuck was the jammer, possibly because Chuck, frank as always but meaning no harm, had told Irb a few weeks earlier that turning every conversation into a political conversation (which VJZ tended to do) was annoying. Eventually, VJZ traveled from New Jersey all the way down to Chuck’s home in Virginia, knocked on his door, accused him of being the jammer, and demanded that Chuck come out and have it out with him, which Chuck wisely refused to do. That rift didn’t heal on Irb’s part, but Chuck in later years expressed much admiration for Irb’s determination and commitment to his principles.
Chuck even made lighthearted fun of his own chosen mode, AM, and, referencing AMers’ concern with sound quality, sometimes gave his on-air handle as “Captain Audio” instead of Chuck.
In real life, his friends usually called him Charlie — but for some reason, maybe compartmentalizing his life for privacy purposes, I am not sure — he used the nickname Chuck on the air, so it is as Chuck that I knew him.
Chuck was so much fun to talk to, always joking around, making things up, and being funny and playful, that it was easy to forget that he was a deep and philosophical thinker, with the science and mathematical education to back it up. From 1978 right through to near the end of his life, we would often have hours-long conversations on topics such as the existence and nature of god, communism, capitalism, democracy, organized religion (he made up a joke “religion” on the 75 meter airwaves, and referred to himself sometimes as “Pastor Chuck,” and offered “prayer cloths” for a small donation), eugenics, physics, cosmology, and many other topics. He was stalwart in his belief that the European race was both uniquely gifted and greatly endangered. He was also a staunch environmentalist, believing strongly that natural areas and wildlife needed protection.
Just a few months before he died, Chuck found some home-schooling mathematics lesson kits at a thrift store, and (knowing that my wife and I intend to home school our young children) bought them, packaged them, and sent them to us as a gift. A man born in the 1920s contributing to the lives of children born in the 2020s — that’s really amazing!
Since I am banned from QRZ (for very bad reasons, but there is no appeal), I will ask around and see if anyone can post this piece on the AM forum section there. I’ll post it to the real AM forum (amfone.net) myself.
73 my friend WA4GGL, for the last time. I miss you.
