Walter "Pete" Kunz

Walter “Pete” Pierre Kunz

Walter “Pete” Pierre Kunz, 79, of Charleston, South Carolina, died on November 9, 2025. Born in Washington, D.C., he was the son of Walter Kunz and Hildegard Spangenberg Kunz. Pete built a life defined by integrity, service, and a genuine love for people and the world around him.

A graduate of Benjamin Franklin University, Pete devoted over 40 years to Millard T. Charlton & Associates, where he retired as a CPA. He took pride in his work, always guided by principle and diligence, and earned lasting respect from his colleagues and clients.

Service was at the heart of Pete’s life. It began with early involvement in the Jaycees and continued as he devoted himself to Rotary from the 1970s through 2014, serving as president for multiple terms and earning recognition as a Paul Harris Fellow. Rotary reflected his belief in leadership, generosity, and community – an unwavering example he set for his family.

Pete married Kathie in 1982 and together they raised four children. Over the years, that family grew through marriages and eventually eight grandchildren who affectionately called him “Granddaddy” or “Ghee”. Family grounded everything he did.

He balanced his devotion to work, service, and family with a lifelong hunger for adventure. Pete scuba dived throughout the Caribbean and Hawaii and skied with friends and family across the United States and Canada. He loved sharing his passions – longer than most moments allowed – with friends and strangers alike, always ending with his familiar refrain, “to make a long story short…” Yet more important than any adventure were the people he experienced them with, whose company gave every experience its meaning.

Honoring his wishes, there will be no formal service. His family will scatter his ashes on a snowy mountaintop and in the depths of the ocean. Those wishing to honor Pete’s memory may make a donation to the Columbia/Patuxent Rotary Club.

Pete is held in love by his wife, Kathie; his children, Chris, Sean, Mike, and Ashley; their families; his grandchildren; and countless friends. His presence will continue to echo in the lives he touched. His life – full of love, purpose, and adventure – was, as he’d say, a long story short.