Charleene Ellington Bell was born in Brooklyn, New York, on May 21, 1949, the second child of six children born to the late Theodore Edward Bell and Annie Lee Bell. Growing up, despite being small in stature, Charleene had the strength of a boy. She enjoyed playing various sports, including handball, stickball, and baseball. Unique and free-spirited, she had a talent for sculpting and painting, which was even reflected by her distinctly eccentric style of handwriting.

After graduating from Prospect Heights High School in Brooklyn, she would later move to Washington D.C., where she attended Cortez Peters Business College. Several years later, Charleene moved to Birmingham, Alabama, where she met and later married Willie Wilson Jr., with
which the couple spent 43 years together before her husband's untimely passing on July 3rd of 2021. Through this marriage, the couple had two children together, a son Willie Wilson III (Tra), and a daughter Dominique La'Vonda Bell-Wilson.

Charleene was employed in the mortgage industry, working for New South Mortgage and Collateral Mortgage before retiring in 2014. Kind and caring, she had a special affinity with animals, though she especially loved dogs, adopting many, regardless of size or breed. To her, all dogs
needed a good home. Charleene was a natural handyman, possessing a gift for fixing anything and everything around the house, ranging from loose cabinet doors to broken light switches, and door latches. She could assemble train sets and bicycles effortlessly, while others required instructions.

Charleene, being the outdoor enthusiast that she was, loved to travel. The beach was one of her favorite places to go, and she often traveled there with her family at any given opportunity. Her thirst for travel didn't stop there, however. She dreamed of one day visiting Paris, France,
though it was a dream that she unfortunately never got to achieve. Charleene was extroverted. She hated staying indoors and would find any and every excuse to leave the house, even if it was for something small, like running to Walmart.

She was a natural storyteller, often telling stories of her childhood, particularly those involving her grandmother 'Mamee', who played a vital role in her life and helped shape her into the person that we all know and love. Charleene loved children and always looked for any reason to spoil children in her life, regardless of blood relation. Every Christmas came with meticulous planning because she always created long detailed lists of every child she knew and what gift they might have wanted. After all, in her words, "Children deserve to be happy". Her love of children extended beyond just her son and daughter. Adored by all, she was a surrogate mother to many of their friends, as well as other children around the neighborhood in which she lived.

During quieter times, Charleene loved watching Science-Fiction TV and movies, such as Star Trek, The X Files, and the Twilight Zone as they helped quell her sense of wonder about the unknown. Charleene's eccentric personality will certainly be missed by all who knew her. On March 1, 2025, Charleene departed this world in the comfort of her home surrounded by family. She was preceded in death by her husband, Willie Wilson Jr., parents, grandmother, Mrs. Ida Mae Ellington, aunt, Luvenia E. Little, brother, Hiwaitha Bell, and sister-in-law, Valencia Muhammad.

Those left to cherish Charleene Wilson's memories are her children: Willie Wilson III and Dominique Lavonda Bell Wilson; Son-in-law 孟博涛 'Damon' Meng) of Beijing, China; sisters Nadean Bell and Inetta Bell; and brothers Breon Bell and Milton Bell. She also leaves behind sisters-
in-law Deborah Wilson, Jewell Gardner, Annette Wilson, Michele Wilson-Morris, Alicia Bell, and Brenda Bell, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.