Dr. Charles W. Skillas
Dr. Charles W. Skillas passed away peacefully at his home on September 19, 2020 after several years of declining health. He is survived by his wife Laura Skillas, his daughter Kathlyne Davis and her husband Robert and children Anna Seabolt (Jack Seabolt) and Evan Davis, his daughter Michelle Earnest and her children JP Earnest (Amy Peery), Zach Earnest (Shelby Earnest), Jeff Earnest (Lauren Yurko), and Maggie Camp (Addison Camp), his daughter-in-law Mary Skillas and her children Kelsey Hunger (Corey Hunger) and Meagan Miller (Nate Miller), and great granddaughter Kaylin Hunger. Dr. Skillas was predeceased by his son Charles Martin in 2003, as well as his sisters Jean Skillas and Sylvia Koepfer, and brother William Joseph Skillas.
In addition, Dr. Skillas leaves a close extended family of nieces, nephews, and longtime cherished friends, especially Darlene Skillas, Bill Skillas, Kristi Skillas, Kyle Zak, Lisa Austin, and Nicole McIntire, as well as the family of his wife Laura, which includes Celia and Joey Costa, Jennifer and Bill Stone. Dr. Skillas was also previously married to Patricia Martin Thurber, whom he always held in the highest regard.
The family of Dr. Skillas would also like to express their deepest appreciation to Laura’s sister, Celia Costa, for her months of assistance in providing loving care for Dr. Skillas in his home.
Charles was born on March 22, 1930 in Toledo, Ohio, and continued to live there and in Detroit, MI until graduating from the University of Detroit School of Engineering in 1953. While in school, Charles was a member of the Chi Sigma Phi Fraternity. His father, Charles William, emigrated from Greece to the USA through Ellis Island in the 1920s, and died when Charles was 10 years old. His mother, Margaret Mary Nagy, was a first generation American whose family emigrated from Hungary.
Dr. Skillas was a Licensed Professional Engineer, earned a Ph.D. in Engineering and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, and spent many years working in the Aerospace/Defense Industry. First for the US Government at Point Magu/Vandenburg, CA, then for Bendix Corporation and Sanders Associates as Chief Engineer, Spartan Electronics as General Manager and VP of Marketing, and later through his business Skillas Associates as a private consultant to the Department of Defense and major defense companies of the Western World in Anti-Submarine Warfare, Submarine Torpedo Defense, and Mine Countermeasures. He was honored by the US Congress for serving as an expert witness and writing legislation which helped create the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Dr. Skillas was also the New Hampshire Co-Chmn. of The NH/ME Bi-State Commission on Oceanography, received the US Navy Meritorious Public Service Medal, and is listed in Who’s Who in America.
In later years, Dr. Skillas became a National Guild of Hypnotists (NGH) Board Certified Hypnotherapist, an NGH Certified Instructor in Hypnotherapy, a Fellow of the NGH
(FNGH), a member of the Business and Metaphysical Teaching Faculty of St. Johns University, a Faculty Member of The National Board of Hypnotherapy and Hypnotic Anesthesiology, served as President of the Georgia Chapter of the NGH, and earned a Doctorate of Divinity (DD) degree in Spiritual Healing Arts. Dr. Skillas practiced Energy Medicine and Hypnotherapy in the Atlanta, GA area for many years, including specialties in Advanced and Clinical Hypnotherapy, Hypnotherapy Instruction, Transformational Counseling, Cell Command Therapy, Spirit Releasement Therapy, Neurolinguistic Programming, Hypnotic Pain Control, Emergency Hypnosis and Past Life Regression Therapy. Services for Dr. Skillas will be private. In lieu of flowers, the Skillas family would be honored by donations to the Alzheimer’s Association at act.alz.org.