Last Wednesday was a tough day for Bassmaster Elite Series angler Andy Montgomery. He suffered the sudden and unexpected loss of his father at the age of 64. His legal name was Charles but all his friends — that would be anyone who ever met him — just called him Chuck.
“I saw him every single day when I wasn’t on the road, every single day. He retired a couple of years ago so that he could devote his full energies to his cattle herd. He had purebred Herefords that he artificially inseminated and he was just getting into embryo transplants. I always said he was the brains of the cattle operation, and I was the common labor. I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like without him.
“With all he had going — he shipped the Jaws of Life around the world before his retirement — he always found time to fish with me. When I was 12 he went to the back of the boat and never came up front again. We won several tournaments back in those days. He always gave me the credit, even if it was undeserved.”
Ott DeFoe, Montgomery’s roommate when they’re on the road, echoed those thoughts. “As soon as a tournament was over he’d hightail it for home. It was obvious he had a close relationship with his dad and just enjoyed being with him. It didn’t matter if they were going to fish, work with the cattle or just spend time together.”
The family will receive friends on Friday, March 16, from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Grover, 403 Cleveland Avenue, Grover, N.C. 28073. Funeral services will be held Saturday, March 17, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. at First Baptist Church of Grover, N.C. Arrangements are through Gordon Mortuary.
Memorials may be made to First Baptist Church of Grover, 403 Cleveland Avenue, Grover, NC 28073 or Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Greater Carolinas Chapter, 205 Regency Executive Park Drive, Suite 102, Charlotte, NC 28217.