Plainfield celebration of life honors legally blind chef who worked to help visually impaired teens

PLAINFIELD, Ill. (WLS) -- Chef Charlie Doman, who was legally blind, had a greater vision for his life and others like him.

He spent his last years working at Moe Joe's in Plainfield to show others that having a disability doesn't disable your dreams.

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A vibrant procession of music and high-flying handkerchiefs waiving marched Sunday through the streets of Plainfield to celebrate a life vibrantly lived.

Doman, 51, died unexpectedly last week.

A New Orleans-style second line parade paid a tribute to the Moe Joe's Cajun-Caribbean restaurant chef and manager.

"I wish he was here, you know, I mean, he would have loved this, and I absolutely loved it," his mother Anna Doman said. "I mean, he had all these friends and so many wonderful people."

ABC7 first met Chef Charlie in 2022. The legally blind chef's special electronic glasses that enhanced the little sight he had left were stolen.

The restaurant's owner offered to buy him a new pair, but instead he wanted to host a "Pies for Eyes" fundraiser, not just to replace his pair, but to help others.

"His favorite thing was the charity he opened, 'Pies for Eyes,' for the seeing-impaired children and buying them vision systems," Anna Doman said.

"We raised so much money that first year that we were able to buy not just him another set, but three other children," Moe Joe's owner Jamie Littell said.

Charlie's family and friends are remembering him for his endearing stubbornness and strength, especially after relearning how to cook and manage kitchen after losing most of his sight.

"Charlie was never blind. Charlie was just a cook you couldn't see," friend Ryan Gramite said. "This is what he did, make food and food makes people happy. And he knew it, always knew it."

"We're going to miss Chef Charlie so much. He inspired everybody," Littell said. "It's really easy to have good character when things are easy. But every single time that things got hard, he shined and just persevered."

Since that first fundraiser years ago, Charlie has raised tens of thousands of dollars to help blind teenagers. His community is now vowing to make sure his legacy continues on.