Charles W. Taggart, CO, LO, passed away on April 12, after a long battle with cancer. He was 72.
His friend and colleague, Thomas Malone, COO of Orthotic & Prosthetic Lab, D-Bar Enterprises, Webster Groves, Missouri, wrote the following in Taggart’s memory:
You can’t really have a conversation about O&P in St. Louis without someone recalling a story about Charlie Taggart. Taggart worked in the field of orthotics for the last 51 years and has left his mark on orthotists and prosthetists too numerous to mention. For the last 26 years, Taggart worked as an owner, orthotist, and the director of central fabrication for the Orthotic & Prosthetic Lab in St. Louis.
Charlie Taggart was a true original. Never one to mince words, you always knew where you stood with Charlie. A product of U.S. Army training, Taggart ran his central fabrication facility like a precision military operation. A tough, no-nonsense boss, Taggart was fiercely loyal to the employees who earned his respect and did their jobs well. If one of his people was in trouble, they went to Taggart, and he would find a way to help.
At age 72, Taggart was still working more than 40 hours per week, side by side with his technicians, doing what he loved the best. Charlie always used a hands-on approach when it came to running the central fabrication facility. When his lab was really busy with all the band saws, drill presses, and air tools going, Taggart used to stop and listen for a second and call it his “music” and tell everyone listening it was the sweetest sound he ever heard. Taggart’s business strategy was simple—he would outwork the competition, and that’s exactly what he did, day in and day out. He used to laugh and say he had forgotten more about orthotics than most modern-day practitioners would ever learn. Most people who had the opportunity to talk with Taggart for any length of time came away with the impression that he was probably right. Most of the practitioners who make up the various O&P companies in St. Louis worked with and were trained by Taggart at some point in time. They have what they affectionately call “Taggartisms”—a list of sayings by Taggart, quoted and re-quoted in the best tradition of the man himself. Originally from Mississippi, Charlie had a saying for just about every occasion.
Highlights of his long list of accomplishments include introducing thermoplastic orthotics to St. Louis, starting the PO systems at St. Louis hospitals, developing the first residency program in St. Louis, and inventing a variety of new braces and innovative manufacturing techniques.
Charlie is survived by his wife of 51 years, Linda Taggart and his two children, Sandy Rader and Debbie Galli.
