Charles J. Woodin

Charles J. “Chuck” Woodin passed away peacefully surrounded by family on September 26, 2024 at age 90. He was born on January 18, 1934, in Wichita, Kansas and was a proud resident of that city his entire life, except the years spent pursuing higher education. Chuck attended Wichita public schools and graduated from Wichita East High School. He attended Yale University, graduating with a degree in electrical engineering, then went on to the University of Kansas School of Law, graduating with distinction, Order of the Coif and Editor-in-Chief – Kansas Law Review. After law school he returned to Wichita and practiced with Foulston Siefkin LLP for over sixty years, where he was a managing partner and remained of counsel until his death. 

Chuck was preceded in death by his parents J.C. Woodin and Bess Woodin, his brother Bill Woodin and sister Marjorie Patrick Arnold. He is survived by his wife Sandra Woodin, brother-in-law Dean Dietz, children Susan Olson (Evan), Shelly Gillum (Todd Seymour), Stacy Woodin and Shelly Riedel, as well as five grandchildren (Eliot Olson, Katie Lee, Grace Casey, Nicky Shaw and Shelby Gillum), eight great-grandchildren (Raegan and Cooper Shaw, Austin Rudkin, Brynlee Chrisman, Sydney and Joey Lee, Zion and Addie Casey), and many cousins, nieces and nephews. 

Among other work for clients of Foulston Siefkin, Chuck handled the full spectrum of legal matters relating to oil, gas and minerals in the areas of purchase and sales, exploration, production, marketing, transportation, financing and regulation. His clients ranged from individual land and mineral owners to independent oil and gas operators, both large and small, to some of the world’s largest major integrated oil and gas companies. Chuck held Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory’s highest “AV” rating for lawyers and was selected by his peers for inclusion in the Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers® list and The Best Lawyers in America©. He was recognized by Best Lawyers® as the 2011 Wichita Energy “Lawyer of the Year,” the 2012 Wichita Natural Resources “Lawyer of the Year,” the 2013 Wichita Mining Law “Lawyer of the Year,” and the 2022 Wichita Energy Law "Lawyer of the Year." His peer memberships include the Kansas Independent Oil & Gas Association and the American Society of Corporate Secretaries.

But more than the law, Chuck held many other interests and talents. He was classically trained in piano and could also play by ear to entertain family and friends. With his engineering training, he could build or fix anything and was always working on some project at home or for others. Susan and Shelly were swimmers growing up and Chuck was an active swim team Dad, organizing and traveling with family to swim meets all over the country. Family trips to ski slopes or warm waters with children and grandchildren were always the highlight of any year. The Downtown YMCA was an important part of his regular daily schedule, where he played basketball, ran or worked out over his lunch hour. 

In mid-life, Chuck developed a passion for sailing. Most weekends would find Chuck and Sandy sailing out of South Bay Yacht Club or Ninnescah Yacht Club on Cheney Lake with as many as the boat would hold, humming the tunes of Jimmy Buffet. As the boats grew larger, the number of crew grew as well. Eventually, his skill enabled him to captain proper ocean-going vessels in the British Virgin Islands, which was Chuck and Sandy’s favorite place to sail. The stories are legend, but captain and crew always returned safely to home port.

The family will receive guests at Noon on Thursday October 3rd at the Cozine Life Events Center, 11500 E. 21st St. North, Wichita, KS 67206. A memorial service will follow at 1:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial has been established with the American Red Cross of South Central and Southeast Kansas, 707 N. Main, Wichita, KS 67203.