Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship Professor Emeritus, Gilbert H. Fechner, passed away peacefully in his sleep on December 16, 2022, just four days before his 100th birthday.

Fechner graduated from Colorado State University, then known as Colorado A&M, with a B.S. in Forest Management in 1947. After working for Hallack and Howard Lumber Company in Denver and then the Tennessee Valley Authority in Tennessee, Fechner and his family moved back to Fort Collins in 1954 where he began teaching dendrology at Colorado A&M. He received his M.A. in Forest Management in 1955, and then his Ph.D. in 1963. Fechner was a faculty member in the Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship for 33 years.

Fechner was known as an innovative teacher and a dedicated advisor, always celebrating students’ successes and giving them the advice to “keep their options open.” Rocky Coleman, FRS professor emeritus, remembers Fechner fondly. Coleman started out as one of Fechner’s undergraduate advisees in 1975 – 1977 and later took over Fechner’s dendrology class when he retired.

“I later became his golf partner in the Forestry College/State Forest Service/ U.S. Forest Service golf league,” Coleman said. “I have fond memories of playing golf with him and working with him on the faculty until his retirement.”

In 1994, the Gilbert H. Fechner Scholarship was established to support undergraduate students enrolled in majors in the Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship. Since the scholarship was endowed, it has supported 23 students. Donations to the“Gilbert H. Fechner Scholarship Endowment (44685)” can be made in his memory here.

Celebration of Life

A celebration of life will be held for Gilbert Fechner on:

Friday, April 21, 2023 at 10 a.m.
Our Saviors Lutheran Church
2000 South Lemay Avenue Fort Collins, CO 80525

Please RSVP to Gilbert’s daughter, Cheryl, at 650-207-2984

Gilbert’s full obituary can be viewed here, as well as an opportunity to leave a message for his family.