Dr. Gordon Thomas Fletcher
Dr. Gordon Thomas Fletcher, 88, of Prospect died peacefully on Monday in the comfort of his home.
Born April 2, 1931, in Ravenscrag, Saskatchewan, Canada, he was the son of the late Elmer and Florence Ion Fletcher.
Following completion of high school, Gordon attended Wheaton College and received his medical degree from the University of Alberta. He emigrated to Pennsylvania and completed his internship at Butler Memorial Hospital, spending several years as a general practitioner in Zelienople before pursuing his specialty, ophthalmology, and opening a practice in Butler. Dr. Fletcher relocated to Ottumwa, Iowa, in 1971, opening an office there where he worked until his retirement in 1989.
Dr. Fletcher was a benefactor member of the Portersville-Prospect Rotary Club, where he was a Paul Harris Fellow and served as a past president. He combined his love of world traveling with his benevolence and passion of healing and helping through Rotary International.
He performed cataract surgeries in India, helped to rebuild schools in Sri Lanka that were devastated by a tsunami, and established a retreat for missionaries in Jamaica. Gordon was also a part of a humanitarian mission to bring medical supplies and surgical equipment to Sri Lanka, helping with their emerging medical system. He enjoyed being a part of Rotary and loved to see what could be accomplished when folks worked together for worthy causes.
Gordon enjoyed many hobbies such as owning and flying his own airplane, scuba diving, skiing, ham radio, and maintaining a small farm near Ottumwa. He loved working with his hands and was a master woodworker. But the thing he was most passionate about was travel. He and his wife, Carol, had visited many countries around the globe.
He is survived by his loving wife of 43 years, Carol May Good Fletcher, whom he married July 3, 1976; his children, Dale (Cary) Fletcher of Missouri, Dean (Lynn) Fletcher of Ellwood City, Duane (Holly) Fletcher of Virginia, Kacee Rose (Rick Wentworth) of Ohio, and Kurt (Molly) Fletcher of Mars; his grandchildren, Alexander, Adam (Sadie), Hannah, Thomas (Lauren), Susan (Brandon), Ross, Danielle, Alexander, Caleb, Ava and Elena; his great-grandchildren, Luke, Grady, Ellie Rose, Jack, Luke and Lizzy; his brother, Lawrence Fletcher of Canada; and many cousins, nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sister, Eleanor Maddox; and his brother, Lloyd Fletcher.
FLETCHER — Friends of Dr. Gordon Thomas Fletcher, who died Monday, Aug. 5, 2019, will be received from 10 a.m. until the time of the memorial service at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, 2019, at Edward L. Raisley Funeral Home, 387 Main St., Prospect. The Rev. Dana Opp, his Rotarian friend and pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Portersville, will officiate.
Memorial contributions may be made to a favorite charity or the Portersville-Prospect Rotary Club, P.O. Box 194, Portersville, PA 16051.
For more information or to leave an online tribute, go to www.raisleyfuneralhome.com.
