Charles D. Cole, 78, a former head basketball coach at Fenton High School in Bensenville, died of complications from Parkinson’s disease Sunday, Jan. 21, in Wynscape Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Wheaton. Mr. Cole of Wheaton was head coach at Fenton High School in the late 1950s and early 1960s, where he also taught English. Born in Nashua, N.H., Mr. Cole also was a substitute teacher in the Wheaton and West Chicago school systems. “He was a great sports fan and also was an terrific 12-inch softball pitcher,” said his brother-in-law, Robert Baptista. Mr. Cole later moved to Albuquerque, N.M., where he worked as a car salesman and an agent selling insurance for Mutual of New York. Mr. Cole then became an advertising manager for the Albuquerque Federation of Teachers. He retired in 1997. Mr. Cole was a 1949 graduate of Wheaton College and had served in the Army during World War II. Other survivors include three sons, David, Steve and Carey; six grandchildren; a great-grandchild; a sister, Martha Baptista; and a sister-in-law. Services are private.
