Stuart Pritchard

PRITCHARD, STUART MARSHALL One of Roswells most accomplished and beloved citizens, Stuart Pritchard, passed away Tuesday at the age of 92.

He was an Air Force lieutenant colonel, businessman, artist, writer and civic leader who retired in Roswell, his hometown, after Walker Air Base closed in 1967.

Pritchard was born on Nov. 3, 1921, in Hagerman.

He was employed at the Carlsbad Cavern National Park when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. A beginning pilot who had just completed training in the Civilian Pilot Training program, he was assigned to the Army Air Corps in January 1942, completed an accelerated program and spent a major portion of the war as an instructor of instruments and formation tactics.

Sent to the South Pacific Theater, he flew as a B29 pilot until the close of hostilities, then returned to civilian life to join his brother, Dick, in a homebuilding business. As a reservist, he was recalled for the Berlin Airlift where he flew about 100 missions.
His service records display 27 years of military service with stints in Okinawa, Japan, France, Germany and French Morocco. Upon retirement, he became director of public relations at New Mexico Military Institute for three years, then left to open McDonalds restaurants in Roswell and later in Carlsbad.
He was a Command Pilot, an Eagle Scout, a cartoonist and an amateur historian who has written three historical and one fictional book, all about local history or local characters. He was a decent golfer who had three holesinone and who shot his age three times, a feat considered somewhat difficult.

After his retirement in Roswell, he had been a member of the successful AllAmerican City Task Force was secretary to the Eastern New Mexico Hospital Foundation and was originator and master of ceremonies to the AllAmerican Banquet Program, a cityNMMI coordinated program featuring nationallyknown guest speakers. He originated the Old Fashioned Fourth celebration, free allday activities which after several years, led to the present July 4 fireworks show wrote, produced and codirected Roswells bicentennial jubilee, a twohour musical held in the Wool Bowl and attended by more than 8,000 people.

He was president of the McDonalds Operators Association for five years, a six state group of
owneroperators that was awarded McDonalds highest award the Ronald McDonald statuette for leadership.

He served on the board of Roswells Chamber of Commerce and served as president of the Roswell Red Coats. During his tenure, he secured the use of Ray Krocs Big Mac Bus to take the Redcoats on tours of nearby towns to meet with counterparts. He was a former member of the Salvation Army Advisory Board and together with several members of the Rotary Club, secured the Harrison Schmidt space suit and built the display still in use in the Roswell Museum.

He cochaired the committee that secured the funds for building the Girl Scouts complex north of the zoo was campaign chairman for the 1975 United Way, a year when the agency first reached a 200,000 goal that was one of several cooperative efforts with Walt Gibson.

He drew political cartoons for the editorial page of the Roswell Daily Record for more than a year wrote a historical booklet for the bicentennial celebration published a history of Eddy County and a similar pictorial history of the Roswell area, then penned a novel using Pat Garrett and Lincoln town for color.

Together with Walt Gibson and Rogers Aston, the trio raised the funds and assured the placement of the John Chisum Statue in Pioneer Plaza.
One of Pritchards proudest achievements was designing and supervising construction of the new archives erected adjacent to the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Museum.
He wrote and produced a roast of Mayor Bill Owen which assured the furnishing for the archives kitchen. He designed, secured funds for a statue of Sheriff Pat Garrett for the renewed Chaves County Courthouse and a bust of Juan Francisco Chaves now in place near the eastern entrance to the courthouse.

He submitted historical vignettes in the Roswell Daily Records Vision Magazine for more than three years. Pritchard was Roswells Man of the Year twice, one by the Elks Club and again by the Roswell Realty Association. He was also selected by Leadership Roswell for Lifetime Achievement.

Pritchard and his wife Rita produced three sons. The oldest, Guy S. Pritchard, and his wife, Glenda, had twin boys, Cory and Coby. Cory in turn has two daughters with wife Elizabeth. Coby has son Sean with his wife Aimee. The middle son, Stuart Jr. and wife, Lois, bore three children: Victoria, Stephen, and Elizabeth. The youngest son, Kim R., and his wife, Helen, have a girl and boy, Erin and Evan.

His father, Clarence, and mother, Winifred, preceded him in death. Also preceding him in death was his brother, Richard, and four sisters: Helen Riley Orrison, Mary Wilson, Jeanne Card and Constance Grim and granddaughter Elizabeth.

A private memorial service will be held at 2 p.m., Friday, at the NMMI Chapel by Chaplain Maj. Daniel Musgrave.

Arrangements are by LaGrone Funeral Chapel.

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