Charles Rickard King

07/18/1938 – 10/24/2012

Charles “Chuck” King was born in Los Angeles on July 18, 1938 and passed away at his home in Santa Ynez early Wednesday morning. Chuck’s mother, Consuelo Rickard, was a descendant of California’s earliest Spanish settlers, the de la Guerra and Orena families – a heritage of which Chuck was very proud. His dad, Captain C.E. King (Pop) was a career naval officer who afforded young Charles and his family the opportunity to live in various places around the country and abroad. Chuck spent his first two years in the Philippines and China. During his adolescent and teenage years, the family moved around the country following Captain King’s various deployments. Chuck attended Los Alamos Grammar School, San Roque School in Santa Barbara, the Sacred Heart School in Coronado, Middletown School in Rhode Island, Georgetown Preparatory School in Maryland, and Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai. He excelled in academics, was a gifted athlete, and was quick to make friends. Summers and vacations were always spent at the ranch in Los Alamos, where Chuck truly considered home.

After two years of active duty in the Marine Corps, Chuck attended the University of California Santa Barbara, where he was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and graduated with a degree in economics. In 1962, Chuck and his brother Bill, formed King Bros. Cattle Co. and leased a ranch in Parkfield in southern Monterey County. Over the next decade, the King Brothers ran cattle on various leases throughout the central coast, including the ranch in Los Alamos.

In the early 1970’s Chuck obtained his real estate license and moved to the Santa Ynez Valley. By 1975, he was a member of the Million Dollar Club. However, Chuck never lost his passion for ranching and always maintained his own cattle herd.

In 2005, Chuck and his brother Bill were chosen as Honorary Vaqueros by the Fiesta Rodeo Board in Santa Barbara. In 2011, the brothers were Honored Vaqueros at the Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum.

Chuck was a loyal and dedicated Marine, a member of the Los Rancheros Visitadores, the Los Adobes de los Rancheros, the Los Alamos Society, the California Rangeland Trust, the Santa Barbara County Cattlemen’s Association, the California Cattlemen’s Association and the Santa Ynez Valley Association of Realtors.

Chuck was a devoted friend, a respected colleague, a beloved father, grandfather, brother, and uncle. He was a kind and generous man who leaves behind a void that cannot be filled.

Chuck is survived by his three loving daughters, Teri Price (husband Pete), Tina Muir (husband Brian), and Caci King; his grandchildren, Ciera and Samantha Price, and Bryson and Cole Muir; his brother Bill (wife Saundra); nieces Jenny Hardin (husband Luke) and Katy King (Randy Sharer), nephew Billy King, their mother Do’Lorus King; and his beloved companion Lynn Gildred.

For those who wish to remember Chuck, donations may be made to the Rancheros Visitadores Scholarship Fund, the Santa Barbara County Cattlemen’s Association Scholarship Fund, the Marine Corps Scholarship Fund, or the California Rangeland Trust.

Arrangements were made for Charles Rickard King by Loper Funeral Chapel in Solvang. A Rosary for Chuck was recited at Saint Anthony’s Church in Los Alamos. A funeral mass was held at the Santa Ines Mission in Solvang. Charles “Chuck” Rickard King was laid to rest in his beloved Los Alamos on October 31, 2012.