Due to the snow storm and snow removal there will be no parking on Main Street Until Further Notice
From the Mayor’s Office
March 1, 2023
Remembrance
Robert “Bob” Fletcher 1931-2023
On a late summer morning I sat in Bob and Betty Fletcher’s kitchen drinking what seemed a bottomless cup of coffee. I was joined by my friends George Arnott and Dan Burger. The reason for the meeting was to iron out details of the Veterans Day Parade and to possibly borrow a former army Jeep from Bob for the parade. It was lively conversation, much more about worldly life experiences and some war stories. George had been in the Air Force and stationed in Spain, Dan was a West Point Grad and served in the Middle East and Bob, also an Army officer, served during the Korean War and was stationed in Germany during the Cold War. We sat in this sweet much-loved kitchen at a table that was so welcoming and comfortable. This was clearly where so many stories were told and so much life was shared. The morning became the afternoon and stories continued and one memory sparked others. I remember Bob’s openness and kindness. I loved his manner and how he spoke, his gentle and honest inflection – a little Jimmy Stewart, a little Gary Cooper. I can hear him now as I write this, “You know Michael…”
I remember that day, it was as if time stood still, it is a memory I cherish. Bob graciously showed us his artwork, drawings and paintings mostly military themed but also capturing Warwick life. His work is such an artistic record of our community, of military actions, veterans activities, Village and farm life. Bob had the ability to capture important and meaningful moments in his art, often with a simple detail or with a sweeping historic scene that memorialized with solemnity and also small-town joy. The men and women who are the subjects of his work are our own: the multi generations of the Stewart Family, Nicholas Lesando as a proud Grand Marshal for the Memorial Day Parade, Clayton Eurich placing flags at veteran’s graves. The places he drew and painted are ours as well: Railroad Avenue on a snowy night, the farmers’ market, a full moon over rolling hills and orchards all captured to tell the stories of so many lives, always with poignancy and love.
Bob produced three beautiful books filled with his artwork and illustrations. His book Remembrance is a compelling volume that portrays veterans and military funeral scenes from all of America’s wars and is dedicated to all veterans of America’s Wars and those who love them. The remarkable drawings and paintings in this book capture and catalog so much historical information. The finely rendered drawings and paintings offer a unique glimpse of the intimate moments of a soldier’s life and passing. It also describes how as a community and a country we grieve and honor our fallen soldiers. The drawings and paintings from this book were exhibited in the Rotunda at the House of Representatives in Washington DC and a bit later, 21 military paintings were exhibited at the Rotunda at the Senate Office Building also in Washington. The American Legion chartered a bus to see the display. I was honored to say a few words at the reception that opened the exhibit. It was great thrill for his Warwick friends and fellow veterans to see his work on the walls of the rotunda.
And now we say goodbye to our friend, a soldier’s passing. At his funeral our veterans gave Bob a farewell of love, camaraderie and pride. Hundreds of friends and neighbors came to offer sympathy and support to Betty and the Fletcher family. Bagpipes played “Amazing Grace” as we paid our last respects. Bob will be missed by us all. We are left with a legacy of his books and artwork and with memories and remembrances like a day in late summer at the farm, sitting at the kitchen table with friends, drinking coffee and surrounded by the warm glow of Bob’s kind spirit, generosity and listening to wonderful stories.
Image: ‘Hanging the Tri-fold Flag’ from the book Remembrance, A Tribute to America’s Veterans by Robert A. and Robert B. Fletcher.
The next Village Board meeting will take place on Monday, March 6, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 77 Main Street.
