* Charles Oliver; Retired Cement Mason, Artist
Charles Oliver, a retired cement mason, died Saturday at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura after a brief illness. He was 82.
Oliver was born Sept. 8, 1918, in Penrose, Colo.
During World War II, he was in the Army and worked in the copper mines in Tooele, Utah. He was also a correspondent for the Stars and Stripes newspaper in Japan.
After the war, Oliver worked as a cement contractor in Colorado but moved to Ventura in 1956 because of the weather and a building boom.
He was a member of the Operative Tile Plasterers and Cement Masons Local 600. He was also a sculptor, carver, potter, artist, writer and member of the Artists Guild. He especially enjoyed working in his garden.
Oliver is survived by his daughter, Mary Jane Brees of Nevada City; son George Robert Marsh of San Francisco; and two grandchildren.
Services will be private.
Memorial donations may be made in his name to Habitat for Humanity Ventura County, 167 Lambert St., Ventura, CA 93030.
Arrangements are under the direction of Ted Mayr Funeral Home in Ventura.
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