Charles Mcgirt

Charles H. McGirt, 86, of Hilltop Drive, died Friday, September 2 at his home surrounded by his family after a brief illness.

A memorial service will be held at 2pm Thursday, September 8 at First Presbyterian Church, by the Rev. Jon Martin. A private burial will be held at Lexington City Cemetery.

The family will receive friends following the service in the church fellowship hall.

Mr. McGirt was born May 5, 1936 in Bennettsville, SC to Roger Martin McGirt and Louise Brooks McGirt. Known as Charlie to his friends and acquaintances, he grew up in Lenoir, NC where he attended public schools, graduating from Lenoir High School in 1954. He also attended Culver Military Academy Navel Summer Schools in Culver, Indiana for three summers, graduating from it in 1954. He graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne University in 1958 and the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1961 and was recognized at graduation as being the member of the graduating class who had made the highest grades of any member during his or her final year of study at the School of Law.

Upon successfully passing the bar examination, he was licensed to practice law August 5, 1961 and immediately began his career in the practice of law with the firm of Walser Brinkley, as it was known then, now Brinkley Walser Stoner, PLLC, where he remained for the next 60 plus years engaged in the active practice of law. In addition to the North Carolina State Courts, he was admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals where he became a permanent member of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Judicial Conference and the United States Supreme Court. He was a past president Davidson County Bar Association, a charter member of the North Carolina Association of Defense Council, and a member of the Federation of Insurance and Corporate Council, a national organization, and the North Carolina Bar Association. He has received an AV Preeminent Rating by Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings annually since 1980. He received congratulations from the Senate of the North Carolina General Assembly for his 50 years in the legal profession at Brinkley Walser Stoner, PLLC in 2011 and was inducted into the North Carolina Bar Association General Practice (now Legal Practice) Hall of Fame in 2012.

Charlie was a longtime member of the First Presbyterian Church of Lexington, and a former Sunday School Teacher, Deacon, and Elder, and currently serving as a member of The Presbyterian Church (USA) Salem Presbytery's Permanent Judicial Commission. He had also been involved in community affairs, advising and serving on various boards of charities and other worthwhile organizations and was a past president of the Lexington Rotary Club.

Charlie was married to the former Dottie Myers of Lexington, North Carolina and celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary this year. Charlie and his wife, Dottie, enjoyed traveling together to many other states and particularly to international countries and destinations in the past and he enjoyed reading history and visits to historical sites and was very involved in genealogy and researching local sources of information. His brother-in-law, Bert May, and his sister-in-law, Julia McGirt, preceded him in death.

He is survived by his wife, Dottie Myers McGirt of the home; his sons, Phillip McGirt and Chuck McGirt, both of Lexington; his granddaughter, Vivian McGirt, his brother, Roger Martin McGirt, Jr of Franklin, TN; his sister-in-law, Carol May of Lexington; and his niece and nephews, Marty Hucks (Ronnie), Patrick McGirt (Rebecca), Deems May (Susan), and Jacob May (Amber).

In lieu of flowers, memorials should be made to the donor’s choice.