Leonard Dean Fisher, 93, of Oak Park, died on Jan. 24, 2017. Born on Aug. 30, 1923, he grew up in Zanesville, Ohio, where he graduated from Lash High School in 1941. He began his service in the Ninth Army Air Force in December 1942. While stationed in England with the 453rd Air Service Group, he assisted with preparations for the glider assaults of Operation Overlord (Normandy) and Operation Market Garden (Holland). A musician, he also played in dance bands that entertained Air Force pilots and their English guests. Like his father before him in WWI, he was stationed in France for a brief time.
He returned to the U.S. in November 1945 having attained the rank of staff sergeant. After the war, he attended Ohio University in Athens, Ohio and graduated in 1949 with a major in accountancy and a minor in economics. He married Johanna Yvonne Baker in 1951 and lived with his family throughout Ohio while he worked for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, until 1967 when he led them to the Chicago area.
Before his retirement, he worked as a computer systems analyst for Pullman Standard and the Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Hospitals. After retirement, he lived with his son’s family in Oak Park and worked as a volunteer at a local hospital.
Leonard Fisher was the father of Carlton (Dr. Linda) Fisher, Gregory (Becky) Fisher, Tanya (Carl) Mahnke and Lynette (Noel) Griffin; the grandfather of Paul (Lauren) Fisher, Sarah (Cory) Hahn, Jason (Samantha) Fisher, Brian Fisher, Lynnsey (Dusty) Brownfield, James Mahnke and Annie (Michael) Lilly; the great-grandfather of four; the brother of the late Laurence (Irvalee) Fisher; and the former husband of the late Johanna Yvonne Baker Fisher.
Memorial visitation will be held on Saturday, Feb. 11 from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., followed by a memorial service at noon and a celebratory luncheon, all at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 611 Randolph St., Oak Park.
Interment will be private.
