KILMARNOCK—Tommy Arthur Fletcher of Kilmarnock passed away on Wednesday, January 7, 2026.
He was born near Grundy on February 14, 1942, the youngest of 10 children. The family moved to Manassas when he was five, where his first job was picking up soda bottles along the ditches for the deposit money to help the family finances. Through his school years he milked cows and helped with other chores on the family farm, adding part-time work delivering mail and helping in the local drug store.
In 1964 he graduated from the University of Richmond, and, learning that his draft number was next, enlisted in the army and was sent to Vietnam for the next two years, where he routinely volunteered for helicopter rescue missions into the jungle to bring back wounded soldiers.
Upon his return, he took a job teaching English and history to eighth graders in Fairfax County and earned his master’s from George Washington University. For the next 27 years he built a legacy and served as an example for the thousands of students who passed through his classroom by demonstrating his respect and fondness for them while holding them to high standards.
In his first teaching year he met his wife Carole, also a teacher, and they married in 1968. The arrival of four children brought a busy family life, but in spite of having to take on extra jobs painting, building decks, or replacing roofs to keep bills paid, Tom rarely missed one of their school programs, ball games, or music concerts, even through their college years.
Tom was a talented athlete who excelled in football, basketball and baseball, and he enjoyed sharing his love of sports with his children and their friends, playing with them and teaching skills when they were young, and coaching their teams as they grew older. He devoted 12 years to coaching Little League baseball, leaving a generation of players understanding that a sport is more rewarding and fun the more work and effort that’s put into it.
In 1997, Tom took early retirement from teaching and spent six years on a second career as a roofing estimator for a neighbor, retiring a second time in 2005, this time to Kilmarnock. Here he continued his lifelong habit of looking for ways to help others, mowing a neighbor’s grass, painting the church, working on projects at the Kilmarnock Museum, or helping friends plant a garden.
From 1968 until 2024, Tom grew and gave away so much garden produce every year that his entire neighborhood was supplied with fresh vegetables. When the Chesapeake Chorale needed help with ticket sales for Christmas concerts, Tom volunteered, then became their concert master for almost 10 years.
Deep faith in God, thinking of others first, love for and loyalty to family, supreme kindness and generosity were at Tom’s core, along with a work ethic that would not allow him to stop until a job was done. He spent a lifetime keeping these his guiding principles.
Tom was predeceased by his parents; six brothers and a sister; and a son, Dr. Wade Elliott Fletcher.
He is survived by his wife, Carole; children, David Fletcher (Jennifer), Kacy Fletcher (Trevor Tufty), Brandt Fletcher (Isabelle) and Kimmy Pandorf (Ron). He is also survived by sisters, Blanche Boyd and Emily Wood (Bill); as well as grandchildren, Riley, Will and Larkin Fletcher, Izzy and Gabby Pandorf, Logan and Lauren Tufty, and Rakym Felder; and many cousins, nieces and nephews.
A celebration of life service will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, January 19, at Kilmarnock United Methodist Church, 89 East Church Street, Kilmarnock.
In lieu of flowers, a donation might be made to the Kilmarnock United Methodist Men or to Lancaster County Little League, P.O. Box 1491, Kilmarnock.
Currie Funeral Home is handling arrangements.
