Richard D. Fletcher died Thursday, Dec. 22, at his home.
June Mamagona Fletcher, his wife and partner of more than 45 years, watched over him in the last night.
Rich was born in Grand Rapids on April 1, 1951. He was the oldest sibling in his family, which included Jackie, Perry, Tim, and Robin. As a boy, Rich was a baseball and football player. As an adult, he was a demanding follower of the losing teams of Detroit.
He helped to make a home that valued education and responsibility. His boys were ballplayers like he was, and Rich went to every game he could.
Even in retirement, he worked, cultivating a prolific garden and building a tree house for his grandchildren. Rich was a deer hunter and a fisherman. He patrolled the acreage behind the house with his bow and his gun, and occasionally brought home an unlucky buck. He fished in the Great Lakes and dipped for smelt in Carp River
Rich and and his wife built a home together from the ground up.
Richard is survived by his wife June Mamagona Fletcher, his children Matthew Fletcher (who is married to Wenona Singel) and Zeke (Katie) Fletcher his grandchildren Nolan, Ben, and Laura Fletcher (children of Zeke and Katie), Owen and Emmett Singel-Fletcher (children of Matthew and Wenona), his siblings Jackie Burgess, Perry Fletcher, Tim Fletcher and Robin Curtis. He has dozens of nieces and nephews, and many many cousins.
He was preceded in death by parents Jack Fletcher and Honor Simmons.
Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27, at the Gun Lake Tribe’s Luella Collins Community Center 419 126th Ave., Shelbyville. Richard’s family will meet with friends and relatives from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 26 at the Kubiak-Cook Funeral Home Wayland Chapel, 312 N. Main St.
In honor of Richard, the family asks memorial contributions be directed to Wings of Hope Hospice or Salem United Methodist Indian Church.
You will be missed, Mr. Fletcher. It was a pleasure to know you.
Rich, rest easy in eternity – you leave a lasting legacy in June and the boys – a fine family. You will be missed and your efforts were obvious for all to see.