A Normandy Park resident known for his love of archery passed away last month in his home at the age of 98.

Glenn St. Charles was considered an archery pioneer, having owned a small archery shop called Northwest Archery Company in Normandy Park on 1st Avenue South for over 50 years.

Jerry Guite owned AAA Liquidating next door to St. Charles' shop. He said St. Charles had a "remarkable life."

"I have lots of respect for the guy," he said.

Guite said it was St. Charles who connected with a man named Henry Bear, the mind behind a successful brand of Henry Bear knives. Guite said the knives were a success back then and he and St. Charles sold "tens of thousands of Bear's knives."

Guite said that the former archery shop owner used to have target practice right in the store parking lot.

"I don't think you can do that nowadays. Back then it was a little more country," he said with a laugh.

St. Charles also owned a lot of museum quality merchandise at his archery shop, which he donated to the Archery Bistro, the restaurant that replaced his shop and opened in Nov. 2009.

Among the memorabilia is a canoe that hangs from the restaurant's ceiling, a few pairs of snow shoes that adorn his wall, and a wooden statue of a bird that stands behind the bar overlooking patrons.

But that's not the only thing overlooking patrons.

An old-fashioned portrait painting of St. Charles hangs on the west wall of the Archery Bistro, dressed as if St. Charles had come straight off the set of a western as he sports a cowboy hat and a western style jacket with long tassels.

"He had a remarkable life, God bless him," said Guite.

According to his obituary published in the Oct. 8 Times/News, St. Charles graduated in 1930 from West Seattle High School.

He is one of a handful credited with legitimizing the bow and arrow for big game hunting in Washington as well as the rest of the United States in the 1950s.

In 1961, Glenn founded The Pope and Young Club, North America's bow hunting big game recordkeeping organization. He was inducted into the Archery Hall of Fame in 1991.

St. Charles wrote two books, "Bows on the Little Delta" and "Billets to Bow."

A memorial will be at 3 p.m., Nov. 1 at The Normandy Park Cove, 1500 SW Shorebrook Dr.

Remembrances in his name can be made to Group Health Hospice, 1730 Minor Ave., Suite 1500, Seattle, WA 98101, The Archery Hall of Fame or The Pope and Young Club.