JORDAN T. HANSEN
JOE MANTARIAN
TRIBUTE
“Radio silence” took on new meaning when Carl L. Fletcher ’92/’99 died suddenly on November 7, 2015. The loss of the beloved Olivet professor and respected radio industry professional leaves a void in the lives of his family, his students, alumni, faculty and other colleagues. He is survived by his wife, Camille (Smith) ’92; their daughters, Caitlin, Camryn, Carly and Cara; his sister and brother-in-law, Deb (Fletcher) ’89 and Mark Howard ’85 of Bourbonnais; and his brother and sister-inlaw, Brian ’91 and Jill (Duerksen) ’89 Fletcher of Jackson, Michigan.
WE REMEMBER CARL FLETCHER
Mr. Fletcher, 45, was assistant professor and director of broadcasting in Olivet’s Department of Communication. He also served as operations director for Olivet’s radio ministry, the Shine.FM network. He was working on his doctorate at Regent University. “Carl was passionate about the impact of Christian radio and training future Christian broadcasters,” said Brian McIntyre Utter ’91, general manager at Shine.FM. “The outpouring of tributes by colleagues in the Christian radio industry, and his students past and present, shows what a huge impact Carl had on all of us at Shine. FM, Olivet and beyond.”
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“Carl is the bright spot making witty and insightful comments on discussion boards in our Ph.D. program,” said Katie Clarke, a fellow doctoral candidate. “To say he will be missed is a great understatement. Carl, I will think of you and remind myself not only to do my best and keep going, but also not to take it all too seriously. Our Ph.D. family loves you and will miss you greatly. As far as I'm concerned, you earned a doctorate on a life well lived.”
HONORING HIS WORK Many who knew and worked with Mr. Fletcher remember him as a catalyst — a change agent. One of his greatest desires was to see Olivet students join the ranks of successful alumni influencing the world for Christ through media. Nurtured by his care and guidance, Olivet graduates are working in radio stations from coast-to-coast and around the world. Olivet and the radio industry are developing memorials to honor Mr. Fletcher’s life and legacy. At press time, Olivet was preparing to announce establishment of the Media Catalyst Scholarship, to be awarded to a Communication student committed to being a catalyst for Christ in the world through media excellence.
In addition, the University was readying plans for a memorial to Mr. Fletcher in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Shine. FM in 2017. “Carl was working with me on completely overhauling our studio facilities – from analog to HD – to help us streamline and stabilize our connectivity with a multi-location network,” said Utter. “Once this work is finished, we want to dedicate our new FM studio in Carl’s memory.” Utter also announced that Christian Music Broadcasters (cmbonline.org) is creating an annual scholarship named for Mr. Fletcher. The scholarship will fund registration, travel and related costs for a broadcast educator to attend the Christian Music Broadcasters annual Momentum Conference, an industry event where Mr. Fletcher and his students were among those who regularly represented Shine.FM.
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