Charles Stephenson Obituary

Charles William Torquill Stephenson died on December 17, 2025, following a stroke. Shortly after his birth near London on June 30, 1935, the family moved to Oxford, where his father had a position in psychology at the University. They lived there throughout World War II while his father, made a Brigadier, was tasked with psychology in England and in India. Charles attended his cherished Dragon School until he was 13, when his father moved the family in 1948 to the USA to teach at the University of Chicago. Charles, his mother, and his three siblings first stayed with relatives in British Columbia. From a high school in Chicago he was awarded a Ford Foundation scholarship for 16-year-olds to enter one of certain universities. He chose the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he followed the Integrated Liberal Studies program and was Managing Editor of the Daily Cardinal. After getting a BSc in 1955, he enrolled in NYU Law School, then transferred after one year to Yale Law School (1959 LLB). Always striving to do his best, he suffered a breakdown while at Yale. He was diagnosed later as bipolar, though unipolar better describes him, as he never experienced depression in any of his episodes. After law school he became an American citizen, first practicing in a small firm in New Canaan, CT, then moving to USAID in Washington, where he was an attorney in the General Counsel's Office for 31 years.

Alongside his professional work he was a writer. He self-published "Development Cantos" in 1993, "Dream Cantos" in 2001, and "Transparency Cantos" in 2008. Illustrations are by his mother Maimie Stephenson, an acclaimed artist. His writing was encouraged by a summer visit to Ezra Pound's daughter Mary de Rachewiltz, who lived in the Italian Alps. In a turret of her castle, Charles created an innovative form of blank verse, which is formatted to appear like poetry, but uses sizable indentations to direct the pace at which the reader is to read it. He was also a talented carpenter and a sensitive portrait photographer, who excelled with the candid shot. He delivered jokes with an infectious humor, and had a vast memory for poetry and from his past. In support of his father William Stephenson's work on Q-Methodology, he was made Honorary Chair of the International Society of the Scientific Study of Subjectivity (I4S). He was a member of the Society of Policy Scientists, of DACOR (an Organization of Foreign Affairs Professionals), and of the British and Commonwealth Society of North America.

He was happily married to Cathya Wing for 56 years. He is survived by her and by their two children, Margaret (Vladimir Zaslavsky) and Donald; one step-granddaughter, Alexandra (Shay) Knaani; three grandchildren, Nicholas, Sophia, and Leonor; and three step-great-grandchildren, Jordan, Skylar, and Luka. While the granddaughters live in Brazil with their mother and her family, these other family members live in the DC area. Charles's brother Richard (Mary Ellen) lives in Rogersville MO, but he was predeceased by their sisters Averil and Mariel. A Celebration of Charles's Life will be held in the spring in Nethers, VA in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where the family enjoyed spending many weekends, and Donny is currently upgrading their antique log cabin.