Curtis Mourns Charles Sterne III

Curtis mourns the loss of friend and former longtime staff member Charles “Chuck” Sterne III, who passed away on Sunday, January 9, at age 74 from cancer.

Mr. Sterne was a dedicated member of Curtis’s development and advancement departments for 27 years, from February 1993 until his retirement as director of principal gifts and planned giving in December 2020. In those nearly three decades, Mr. Sterne led important fundraising initiatives at the school, including the campaign to develop Lenfest Hall and the creation of The Founder’s Society. His work helped transform our school and contributed significantly to our long-term financial stability.

Upon Mr. Sterne’s retirement last year, Curtis announced that the first floor reading room of the library would be renamed in his honor. Mr. Sterne had always loved that room—he found it to be a place of solace and of inspiration for writing many important proposals. We hope that our community will also find both solace and inspiration in the Sterne Reading Room for years to come.

Mr. Sterne’s dedication to our school extended far beyond his daily job functions. He genuinely cared about our school and the Curtis community, and was truly devoted to our students, alumni, faculty, staff, trustees, and donors. He was generous with his time, resources, knowledge, and words of encouragement. But most importantly, Chuck was our friend and a much-valued member of our Curtis family.

Curtis extends our heartfelt sympathies to his wife, Eileen, and to his daughters, as well as to all his friends, family, and colleagues. He will be greatly missed.