Longtime Chaminade-Madonna educator dies | Sign condolence book

Brother Charles Roggemann left Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory six years ago. But when a man with gentle wit and a quirky personality teaches three decades' worth of students, his memory lasts.

The Marianist brother died Nov. 10 in Dayton, Ohio, from complications related to Parkinson's disease. He was 88.

Word of his passing spread online: Julie Tyrrell, communications coordinator at the Hollywood school, said the notice on the school's Facebook page was reposted on at least 16 other pages. The school's emailed newsletter, which usually gets 600 to 800 hits, got more than 1,000, she said.

"The response went viral," Tyrrell said. "It's overwhelming."

"Brother Chuck," as he was known around school, was born Sept. 17, 1923, in Queens, N.Y. He entered the Society of Mary in 1943 and earned a master's degree in English at Duquesne University in 1967. He taught at secondary schools in Pittsburgh, Brooklyn and Ponce, Puerto Rico, before coming to Chaminade-Madonna in 1971.

There, he taught English and French. He developed a reputation for dry wit and eccentric flourishes such as dressing as Dracula each Halloween. He collected and recycled aluminum cans, giving the money to a tuition assistance fund.

He liked to trim trees and shrubs and to tend school gardens. He constantly taught vocabulary, introducing students to the "Word of the Day."

Kevin Rieth, a student at Chaminade-Madonna in the mid-1970s, remembers Brother Roggemann as "kind, personable, easy to talk to. He was very dedicated to the school and the students."

The Rev. Larry Doersching, president of Chaminade-Madonna, agreed. "He had an ability to reach practically every student he taught."

For his work, Brother Roggemann was named in 1995 as a "Founder" of Chaminade-Madonna, an honor given for extraordinary service to the school.

He retired in 2002 but stayed in South Florida, helping at the school on a volunteer basis. He came to campus every day, tutoring, helping in the library and talking with students.

His illness required him to move in 2005 to the Mercy Siena Gardens in Dayton. Burial was scheduled for Queen of Heaven cemetery in Dayton.

Brother Roggemann is survived by two sisters, Mary R. Waechtler, of Amityville, N.Y., and Gertrude R. Muir, of Charlottesville, Va.

Doersching will preside at the memorial Mass, planned for 7 p.m. Nov. 28 at the school's caf-auditorium. Giving the homily will be the Rev. Joe Tedesco of the school's guidance department.

Well-wishers can send donations to the Brother Charles Roggemann Endowment Fund in care of Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory, 500 E. Chaminade Drive, Hollywood, FL 33021.

jddavis@tribune.com or 954-356-4730