It all started with one dishwasher.
Harrell Fletcher launched Fletcher’s Home Appliances with one appliance in 1945. Once it sold, he closed down shop, installed it and used the money to expand the company. Through his business, Fletcher generated a network of friends — and expertise that led him to become one of the most respected political and community figures in Santa Maria’s history.
“That’s how he developed all his friends in the community,” Fletcher’s daughter, Linda Wallace, told Noozhawk on Tuesday. “If they were his customers, he treated them with such warmth and care; he ended up becoming lifelong friends with them.”
Fletcher, a longtime Santa Maria resident and former Santa Barbara County supervisor, died Monday evening at Marian Medical Center from complications related to pneumonia. He was 91. Information about a memorial service has not yet been released.
The day before he died, Fourth District Supervisor Joni Gray had conveyed the message that she wouldn’t be where she is today without the courage and opportunity Fletcher gave her.
“He did a really good job of encouraging people to fill in the holes when he won’t be there anymore,” said Gray, adding that Fletcher had an uncanny ability to perceive where people excel. “He found people to do jobs that needed to be done in the community. Harrell Fletcher made sure that void was full.”
Gray also said she purchased her first piece of furniture from Fletcher.
“He showed me how to buy my first piece of furniture. He had a great sense of design and what your style will be,” she said. “And when you are starting out in life, that’s pretty neat so you don’t make a mistake.”
Fletcher treated her as a lifelong friend that she could depend on, Gray said.
“When the first carpet I had flooded from a broken water heater, Harrell came out to my house, showed me what needed to be done and took care of it,” she said. “He truly cared about the people he helped.”
Fletcher was the longest-serving member of the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce, beginning his run in 1946. Dave Cross, Fletcher’s longtime business partner of Fletcher-Cross & Associates, said Fletcher influenced every public and private sector of the community with a work ethic, dedication and sense of civic responsibility that will go unmatched.
“Guys like Harrell don’t come along; you don’t find people like that anymore with his work ethic and involvement,” said Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce President Bob Hatch, who knew Fletcher for more than 20 years.
He said Fletcher’s service ranged from small-business owner, county supervisor, and school board and fair board member to founding member of a bank and senior land-use consultant.
“He reinforced to me that we belong here and we have to give back to the community,” Hatch said. “We can’t just sit on sidelines. We have to be in the game and offer our money, resources and time.”
But Wallace said it was some of Fletcher’s qualities that weren’t related to his knowledge of Santa Maria history and current ordinances that made him so special, adding that Fletcher had a unique appreciation for beauty.
“The other part of my father was very artistic,” she said. “When he bought our first house, he was very concerned of how it was decorated and the color scheme. He grew orchids, enjoyed photography — he loved beautiful things and had an artistic eye.”
Fletcher collected precious stones and made jewelry to fulfill his curiosity in geology. He would point out different trees to his son, Harrell Fletcher Jr., tell him their names, and point to different buildings and explain the architecture.
“He had a multitude of interests, and that’s something that kept him young,” said Wallace, who was wearing a ring her father made from lemon agate he found in Nipomo. “He was curious about so many things. I can say he was never bored. He was always excited about the things he was doing and always learning new things.”
When Fletcher was a boy and his family moved to San Luis Obispo, his teacher had told his mom he was always late, so she decided to follow her son to school one day to find out why.
“He kept detouring off and climbing trees and going down gullies, and would have a huge adventure to school each day to make him late. He was so engaged with the beauty of the walk,” Fletcher’s son said. “That’s how he led his life — he followed his nose, you could see it even in the hospital when he was always checking things out.”
Fletcher also took a special interest in photography and drawing, showing his children how to use a dark room and sketching with his son. He supported the dreams of his son, who is now a world-renowned artist who teaches at Portland State University.
“He directly affected my career path and was completely supportive,” Fletcher Jr. said. “Many children who want to be artists are viewed with skepticism, but he was interested in everything I did. I wouldn’t have done any of the things I have done today if it wasn’t for him.”
On the community side of life, Fletcher often would spend his weekends watching replays of the City Council or Board of Supervisors meetings, Cross said.
“That’s what he loved to do,” he said. “Until the end, he did what he loved to do, he would walk to work everyday and do anything to help the community. There’s never going to be another Harrell Fletcher.”
Cross said he learned something new every time they would talk about a project because Fletcher not only knew how to get things done, he knew the history behind it — “he lived it.”
“I don’t think people will realize how influential he was to the City of Santa Maria and Santa Barbara County,” Cross said.
But while offering his two cents worth, Fletcher would never talk over anyone, Cross said. He would make them want to work with him to facilitate what he was trying to accomplish.
“He treated everyone with the utmost respect,” he said. “Here’s what made him stand out — he not only knew the history, but he stayed involved. He was so politically astute and always up on all the issues.”
Fletcher had received numerous community and achievement awards, including the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Award in 2007, and he was chosen as the grand marshal of the 2010 Santa Maria Elks Rodeo Parade.
“He was a genuinely really nice man who would do anything for anybody,” said Barbara O’Malley, vice president of operations for the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce. “As my mother used to say, you get more with sugar than you do with salt. That’s what I think Harrell thought, too. When you would work with him, you became his friend.”
Fletcher was born in Arkansas and moved to San Luis Obispo at age 11. His father grew up through the Great Depression and did any work he could find. Fletcher seemed to emulate that through his life and took any job he could, his son said.
“He had these axioms he would always reiterate throughout his life: There’s always work if you’re willing to find it, there’s always work for the hardest worker, make yourself indispensable and there’s always room at the top,” he said.
Fletcher attended California Polytechnic San Luis Obispo, then moved in 1941 to Santa Maria, where he met his future wife, Betty.
In addition to his wife and two children, Fletcher is survived by seven grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
“Harrell may have been one of my bosses, but he was also my friend,” Hatch said. “That’s what I remember.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Alex Kacik can be reached at akacik@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk or @NoozhawkNews. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.