Charles Young

elevated XZKND May 25, 1949 ~ November 3, 2025

elevated XZKND Visitation
Saturday, November 15, 2025 from 9:30 – 10:45 am
Holy Cross Catholic Funeral Home
211 Langstaff Road East, Thornhill, Ontario, L3T 3Z6

elevated XZKND Funeral Service
Saturday, November 15, 2025 at 10:45 am – 12:30pm
Chapel of St. Joseph at Holy Cross Catholic Funeral Home
211 Langstaff Road East, Thornhill, Ontario, L3T 3Z6

elevated XZKND Interment
Christ The King Catholic Cemetery
 7770 Steeles Ave E, Markham, ON L6B 1A8

elevated XZKND Obituary

elevated XZKND With profound sadness and love, we announce that Charles passed away on November 3, 2025 at the age of 76, after a 17-month battle with cancer. 

elevated XZKND Born on May 25, 1949, in Kingston, Jamaica, Charles grew up in downtown Kingston, where his parents were shopkeepers. He graduated from St. George’s College high school in Jamaica and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

elevated XZKND At the age of 26, he married, moved to Toronto and started a family. He worked at a couple of banks and found a real passion for bringing out the best in people and organizations through training or process improvement. He leveraged this passion to help launch two successful consulting firms that are still around today.

elevated XZKND Outside of his work, he was always busy helping where he could. He played the guitar and sung at church every week for many years. He volunteered with many charities and non-profit organizations – Friends of the Poor, Out of the Cold, Yonge Street Mission, Habitat for Humanity, The Caring Alliance. He was particularly concerned about homeless and founded an organization called the Multi-faith Alliance to End Homelessness. For his work he was recognized with a Community Service award from City of Toronto in 2005. He also helped organize the first Toronto international Hakka conference, helping to preserve and propagate Hakka culture globally.

elevated XZKND The youngest of 6, he was a devoted son and cared for his mother for many years until her passing in 2010. When his granddaughters were born in 2011 and 2013, he doted on them at every opportunity. 

elevated XZKND Charles is now reunited with his beloved parents, Kenneth (1973) and Annie Young (2010), and sisters Maria (2013) and Madge (2013). His legacy lives on in his devoted wife of 50 years, Mavis, brothers Frank (Mavis), Howard and sister Gloria, sons Ken (Qin) and Andrew, and granddaughters Aubri and Erin, and all who had the privilege of knowing him.

elevated XZKND An excerpt from his Dartmouth 50th year tribute profile sums up his outlook on life:

elevated XZKND “There is a lot to be said for joie de vivre. This is not to be confused with hedonism or conflated with selfishness. In many developing countries I have admired the joyfulness that people with little demonstrate. The little is often enough. They share naturally.

elevated XZKND  Simple pleasures abound, and light-heartedness is evident. They bear the burden of earning a living gracefully. Contrast their ways with the perfection others expect in their triple venti half sweet non-fat caramel macchiato.

elevated XZKND Ring the bells that still can ring

elevated XZKND Forget your perfect offering

elevated XZKND There is a crack, a crack in everything

elevated XZKND That’s how the light gets in.

elevated XZKND –Leonard

elevated XZKND  Cohen”

elevated XZKND Charles was an inspiration and an unforgettable companion on the journey of life.  He will be dearly missed.

elevated XZKND
In lieu of flowers,

elevated XZKND  the family requests that donations be made to the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation.

elevated XZKND A donation page has been set up in his memory, or envelopes will be accepted at the funeral.

elevated XZKND