Obituary: Straight shooter Charles Hartley

Charles Hartley was born in Tauranga, the youngest of four children. His father, Charles Hartley snr, died when Charles was 2. His mother brought up the children on her own until she remarried Alfred Lamport eight years later.
Mr Hartley attended Tauranga School (now Tauranga Primary School) then boarded in Auckland at Mount Albert Grammar. From there he went into the family drapery business, Charles Hartley Ltd on The Strand, and in later years became managing director.
Mr Hartley loved shooting and hunting and at age 5 was already shooting targets, no doubt with encouragement from his mother Mabel who was also a shooter.
Jeweller Don Stewart met Mr Hartley when they were very young.
"Charles came to school on the best bike I had ever seen," he said.
Their ensuing friendship was to last more than 78 years.
"Whatever Charles did, he did well," Mr Stewart said.
"Six of us bought a duck shooting possie at Edgecumbe and all the families would go there. Charles found a two-roomed old Post Office hut which we bought and moved to the property. We had a lot of fun there."
The two friends also owned baches at Lake Rotoiti.
In September 1952, Mr Hartley married Jean Lambourne and they had four children, Virginia (Ginny), Patricia (Trish), John (now deceased) and Brian. Jean died in January 1966.
Later that year he met Deidre Smith and after a whirlwind courtship of six weeks they married and their son Ian was born in 1976.
When Deidre Hartley developed Alzheimer's, Mr Hartley continued to look after her, visiting her daily at lunchtime at her rest home.
Last year the couple moved to live with daughter Ginny Kiddey and son-in-law Geoff until Mrs Hartley died in October.
"Dad loved Deidre until the end," Ginny said.
Mr Hartley was a member of several shooting clubs throughout the Bay of Plenty - smallbore, fullbore and the Tauranga Clay Target club for 66 years.
He was invited to his first national championships in 1947 where he borrowed a side by side shotgun. He came second and was hooked on the sport.
He won six national championships throughout his time in the New Zealand Clay Target Association from 1962 to 1975, and in 1966 the Australian National High Gun title in Sydney.
Mr Hartley represented New Zealand in the Mackintosh teams event against eight other countries 20 times.
He still holds the record for winning the Silver Pigeon four times - three in a row from 1955 to 1957.
In 2005 he won five National Super Veteran titles and shot in the MacKintosh Veterans team for the last time.
"In 2009 Dad was inducted into the Hall of Fame in recognition of his shooting accomplishments in representing New Zealand," Trish said.
Brian, Ian and John all inherited their father's passion for shooting.
On May 1 this year, Mr Hartley shot alongside his son-in-law Geoff, grandson Dan Moloney, and great-grandson Jack Moloney, forming a family squad of four generations at the Whakatane Clay Target Club pre-duck shooters shoot.
"It is a proud memory for me personally. I thought it was quite special that we had four generations shooting together that day." Ginny said.
Great-grandson Jack was presented with his granddad's shooting jacket at the funeral service and he and great-grandson Logan Bell, 4, who was carrying their great-grandfather's treasured Hall of Fame medal, led the casket out of the church for a 24-gun salute from family members.
Mr Hartley is survived by sons Brian and Ian, daughters Ginny and Trish, 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.