Charles Edward Coulter, 70, of Raytown, MO, passed away March 24, 2025. Visitation will be from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 30, at Passantino Bros. Funeral Home, 2117 Independence Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64124. The Funeral Mass will be 11:00 a.m. on Monday, March 31, at St. Therese Little Flower Catholic Church, 5814 Euclid Ave., Kansas City, MO 64130. The family requests that attendees wear bright colors. In lieu of flowers, contributions are suggested to the Emergency Assistance Fund at St. Therese Little Flower Parish; Catholic Charities; the United Negro College Fund; or mental health research.

Charles is survived by his wife, Isabelle Abarr, of the home; three children: his daughter Maureen Elizabeth Coulter and her husband Drew Clark, of Kansas City, KS, and grandsons Khalil and Holden, his son Michael Charles Coulter of Grandview, MO, and his daughter MaryAlice Rose Coulter of East Lansing, MI; a sister T. Marie Harris of Tulsa, OK; a brother James D. Coulter and his wife Carolyn, of Tulsa, OK; sister-in-law Jeanette Ingram; brothers-in-law Andy Abarr, Weldon Abarr, Charles Abarr, and Russell Abarr; many nieces, nephews, cousins and extended family and friends, including Karen McDonald, whose wise counsel he always cherished.

He was preceded in death by his mother Mary Hunter Coulter; his father Charles P. Coulter; a brother Willie T. Horn; and a grand-nephew Marcus Brice.

Charles was born October 11, 1954, in Tulsa, OK. He had many accomplishments in his life but was most proud of the fine adults his children had become. Although raised in the Pentecostal faith, he joined St. Therese Little Flower Catholic Church in 1992, where his faith was constantly nurtured and enriched. There he served as lector, sat on the Parish Council, and routinely delivered the church's Dr. Martin Luther King Day reflection. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus.

He was valedictorian of the Class of 1972 at Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa. He received a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and a master's degree in history from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He was the author of 'Take Up the Black Man's Burden: Kansas City's African American Communities 1865-1939', a study of black life in the Kansas City area published by the University of Missouri Press in 2006. In addition, his narrative covering 150 years of black life in the region was the basis for the permanent exhibit in the Grand Hall of the Black Archives of Mid-America when it re-opened in 2012.

Charles spent more than 30 years as a working journalist, including five years as the Opinion Page Editor of The Kansas City Star. He also taught as adjunct faculty at UMKC and the Kansas City Art Institute, focusing on African American studies. He also was the featured speaker at KCAI's Martin Luther King Day celebration since the late 1990's.

Charles loved learning. He loved researching. He read constantly and was obsessively proud of his book collection. He especially loved the history of people of color throughout the world, and how various races and classes confronted oppression. He also loved hard science fiction. He loved jazz, particularly John Coltrane and other bebop and avant-garde masters. He loved watching football and was an ardent follower of his high school and college alma maters as well as the Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys. But most of all, he loved people and although painfully shy, he tried to have a kind word for everyone he met.

He did all that he did, despite a chronic depression that routinely drained him mentally and physically.

Condolences may be offered at www.passantinobros.com