Alva "Al" Fletcher Pettit

Alva (Al) Fletcher Pettit, 89, of Shawnee, died Friday, Mar. 27, 2020, at St. Anthony’s Hospital.

He was born June 9, 1930, in Cromwell, Oklahoma to James Pettit and Ethel Fairy (Jeffery) Pettit.

He graduated from Harjo High School in 1948 and served in the US Navy as a radar operator on the US Valley Forge during the Korean war. Al graduated from Texas Tech with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1958 and began his career at Tinker Air Force Base.  He retired in 1985, after 27 years of work.  

Al had many hobbies throughout his life; as a musician, he played piano, ukulele, and guitar, he enjoyed wildflower gardening, listening to talk radio programs, conversations with his grandkids, walks at the mall with his daughter Jeanne, and spending time with his family at home.

He was preceded in death by his wife Clara Pettit and two brothers, Harold Pettit and Kenneth Pettit.

Surviving family members include two daughters, Jeanne Marion Williams and husband Tony of Shawnee and Maria Sean Emery of Shawnee; six grandchildren, Alexander Emery, Jessie Emery, Laura Blevins, Michael Williams, David Williams, and Charles Williams; four great-grandchildren, Phoenix Emery, Clara May Smith, and twins Elliott and Julian Smith; one sister, Miriam Joanna Reeves of Gainesville; and several nieces and nephews of Oklahoma and Texas.

Funeral service will take place at St. Benedicts Catholic Church in Shawnee, Ok, on June 23 at 1:00 pm and burial at Calvary Cemetery.