Dr. Charles Arthur Lachenbruch (Charlie) passed away on Thursday, December 20, 2018 in Batesville, Indiana.

Born on June 30, 1955, the devoted son of Edith Bennet and Arthur Herold Lachenbruch, lived a full life.  He grew up in Palo Alto and Los Altos Hills, California, forever scanning the horizon, hiking down trails, and flipping boards looking for animals. He was active as an athlete in high school, college, and beyond, where he moved from early years of basketball, baseball, and track, to college and minor-league baseball, to running, and biking. He was in the Olympic trials for biking and was a two-time gold medalist in Masters Time Trials for biking.

He attended UC Santa Cruz and then Johns Hopkins University where he got a BS, and then pursued exercise physiology with an MS from North Texas State followed by a PhD at University of Texas in Biomedical Engineering. During those early years, he also lived, worked, or studied in Alaska, California, and Florida.  Inventive and curious, he pursued ideas of how to cool organs and bodies after trauma to help prolong the period an injured person or organ could survive while medical interventions were being administered. He eventually rose to the position of Chief Scientific Officer at Hill-Rom, the multinational manufacturer of hospital and medical equipment. He worked for them from Charleston, South Carolina and Austin, Texas for many years before moving to their national headquarters in Batesville, Indiana. There, he was a gentle supervisor, an expert communicator who could give tours and explain processes to scientific peers and to staff alike, while running an active research program and overseeing the scientific accuracy of claims his company made of their products. For many years he was the leader of an international group in wound care, specializing in pressure ulcers and in technologies that help prevent them. To that end, he has many publications and patents, and the patents are deployed in the hospital beds that many of us use around the world.

Charlie was a friendly person with a ready smile for people around him. He was a dedicated worker, but was nourished by physical activity.  No one we know had a better arm for throwing–height, distance, speed, even skipping stones on water, and no one had a better eye for wildlife or better recall at statistics about the species he saw.  He followed sports teams by the season, and had an encyclopedic knowledge of records in track and field, baseball, basketball, and football. His interests in describing the physical world through biological and engineering principles showed through in his hobbies, not just in his work.

Charlie had a healthy concern for his friends, family, and the world. He followed politics, and whereas he did share his opinions, he was an especially good listener.  He leaves many friends behind, including his immediate family, Shelly Lachenbruch (wife), Roger and Barbara Lachenbruch (siblings), Art Lachenbruch (father), Nathan and Elena Gartner (nephew and niece), Larry Thompson (step-son) and Tory Thompson (step-grandson).  He had especially important relationships with work friends but also with team members and biking and running partners over the years.  With his interest in the natural world, his engagement with improving medical care, and his special interactions with so many people, Charlie had a good life on this Earth. Charlie will be missed by many friends who know they were privileged to have been among those special people that he knew. Remembrances can be sent to a nonprofit, preferably one that helps protect human rights or people in vulnerable conditions.

Charlie’s wishes were to be cremated and there are no services at this time.  Meyers Funeral Home is assisting the family. Online condolences www.meyersfuneralhomes.com