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- [S4] Knoxville News-Sentinel (Tennessee), 28 Sep 2004.
Roy Leon Headrick obituary
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 3 Apr 2018.
SEVIERVILLE -- When she needed a person who could make her paying customers happy, Linda Poland repeatedly called Cuz.
Charles "Cuz" Headrick, a local storyteller and musician, passed away at the age of 80 on March 25. Friends remembered him on Monday as a man both dependable and dependably entertaining.
"He was a delight," Poland said of her late friend and fellow storyteller. "He would light up a room when he came in with his sense of humor. He exuded a great calm presence. He could make anyone feel at ease ... I own a storytelling company. I always knew if I needed an uplifting, fun storyteller, Cuz would never let me down. Many, many times I hired Cuz to entertain groups."
Poland, a founding member of the Jonesborough Storytelling Guild, currently serves as the resident storyteller of Jonesborough.
Located in East Tennessee, the small town is known worldwide for its annual storytelling festival and year-long events that promote the performance art.
Headrick was a member of the storytelling guild there. The Sevier County resident knew Poland for about 18 years, she estimated, and they worked together for approximately eight of those years.
"He was really the same," Poland said of Headrick's personality as a performer. "He was entertaining on and off the stage. It (his demeanor) was not a put-on."
Another fellow storyteller, Jim Eastin, agreed with Poland that Headrick was the same on and off the stage.
"He didn't become a character as a storyteller when he was onstage," said Eastin. "He told stories from the first person. He didn't have to become someone else on the stage. He was interesting being the person he was."
Eastin, a member of the Smoky Mountain Storytellers Association, said that Headrick was a founding member of the group.
This afternoon, Eastin will officiate at Headrick's funeral service. Eastin is the minister of pastoral care at St. Joseph the Carpenter Episcopal Church, which is located in Sevierville.
According to his obituary, Headrick was also an ordained minister.
"What a lovely man he was - very sweet, loving, gentle," Eastin said. "He was a great musician and very fun to be around."
While some knew Headrick primarily for the stories he told, others knew him best for the music he played.
"Cuz was a constant positive presence at Ober Gatlinburg," said Kate Barido, the attraction's director of sales and marketing. "He had been performing daily on the very top of Mount Harrison for 17 years - from Memorial Day through Thanksgiving - with the Mountain Grass (bluegrass) Band. He told clever stories that brought laughter and smiles to guests and our staff alike."
Gary Moye is one of the members of Mountain Grass Band, and he shared numerous hours with Headrick both on and off the stage.
"Cuz had the gift of gab (and) could talk to anyone about anything," Moye said of his friend and bandmate. "(He could) talk to tourists and tell them jokes and stories - a truly great entertainer. He was a genuine and hardworking man."
According to his obituary, Headrick was originally from Anderson County. In addition to working as a professional storyteller since 1986, Headrick also served as an employee of Knoxville's Rowe Transfer.
Community members are invited to services today being held in memory of Headrick; all events take place at St. Joseph the Carpenter Episcopal Church, 345 Hardin Lane, Sevierville. From 1-1:30 p.m., the family holds visitation. A service will be conducted 1:30-2:30 p.m., with a remembrance and fellowship immediately following and continuing until 4 p.m. Members of Mountain Grass Band will perform at today's celebration of life.
Contact Juli at jneil@themountainpress.com or on Twitter at @NeilWatsonJ.
- [S4] Knoxville News-Sentinel (Tennessee), 30 Mar 2018.
Charles "Cuz" Headrick, age 80, went to heaven on Palm Sunday, March 25, at home, with his wife and family present. Charles is the son of Olaf and Lois Headrick, brother of Ray, David, Betty Jean, Mary Helen, Dorothy, Jim, Frank, Tommy, Roy, Judy, Johnny and Mary Ruth, all who predeceased him. He is survived by his wife, Janice Brooks-Headrick, children, Charles, Jr., Sherri, and Kresti, three grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren, three brothers, Edd, Wayne and Mike, and literally countless nieces and nephews, beyond the third generation.
A Celebration of Life will be held at St. Joseph the Carpenter Episcopal Church, 345 Hardin Lane, Sevierville, TN Tuesday, April 3, from 1-4 pm. Jim Eastin, Bob Leon Shook, Sandy Palmer and Mountain Grass Band will present the program. We want you to Celebrate Cuz' Life. He was also an ordained minister and led many to Christ through the teaching of the Word and the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Cuz was born in Anderson County, lived in Sevier County. As an entertainer he became a professional storyteller in 1986, and a charter member of Smoky Mountain Storytellers Association. He was also a member of Jonesborough Storytellers Guild, Tennessee Storytellers Association, and National Storytellers Network. Cuz was a regular at Jack Tales Theater, Gatlinburg, told stories at Blackberry Farm, Walland, for 10 years, featured at Smoky Mountain Storytelling Festival for 19 years. Also, Dollywood: 84 shows, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Resorts and hotels corporate conventions, Discovery and Travel TV Channels & WDVX Radio programs He has entertained audiences from all over the world at Ober Gatlinburg, where he also played mountain music to 50,000 visitors for each of the last 17 years. His last public program was at St. Joe's, for the International Tellabration.
Charles, when employed by Rowe Transfer of Knoxville, traveled the world, setting up CAT Scans. Rowe moved heavy equipment, USA rockets and Marvel Comic Books press. In the oil fields of Texas, he was sent to Sherman Training School, for explosives on Oil Wells. Back in Pigeon Forge, he built the set of the Passion Play: built Golgotha, rolled the stone from the tomb, and mechanically raised the Cross. He built homes, condos, resorts. He worked hard all his life.
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Abt 1938 - 2018 (~ 80 years)
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