Dr. Charles W. Fitch's Obituary
Dr. Charles W. Fitch of Collierville, Tennessee peacefully entered his heavenly home on October 15, 2025, at the age of 95. He was cherished by his family and was richly blessed with a long, happy, and purpose-filled life.
Charles was born in Springville, Tennessee on January 8, 1930, to Charles Loraine Fitch and Ruby Riley Fitch, moving with his family at a young age to Paris, Tennessee. In 2018, he was blessed to be able to travel to Paris to attend the 70th high school reunion of the E.W. Grove High School Class of 1948, where he was happy to reconnect with a number of his former high school classmates from seven decades earlier.
Charles completed his undergraduate education at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and obtained his Doctor of Medicine degree and his Master of Science in Pediatrics from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) in Memphis. He completed his residency and post-graduate training at UTHSC and served as a Senior Assistant Surgeon in the United States Public Health Service for 26 years (3 active and 23 inactive reserve). He practiced Pediatric Medicine in Paris and also in Jackson, Tennessee before moving to Memphis in 1963. In Memphis, he served as the Director of Variety Children’s Heart Institute from 1968 to 1975 and served as an Associate Professor at UTHSC from 1966 to 1995.
He earned board certifications in Pediatrics and Pediatric Cardiology, and when Dr. Sheldon Korones asked him to join the newly established Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at The MED (now known as the Regional One Sheldon B. Korones Newborn Center), Charles obtained his third board certification in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine and joined the staff, where he spent 17 years helping save the lives of countless premature and critically ill infants. The nurses and staff of the Newborn Center loved him for his quiet, kind, and caring attitude toward everyone he encountered and his patience with teaching and training. He also served on the consultant staff for Methodist Hospital, St. Joseph Hospital, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center. He authored and co-authored numerous books and journal publications on pediatric cardiology-related topics and presented numerous invited lectures on newborn medicine.
Charles retired from medical practice in 1995 to spend more time with his family and in his workshop, where he used his extraordinary woodworking skills to build beautiful pieces of furniture. He had a passion for antique clocks and was the first person many people turned to when they needed help to get a clock (new or antique) working again. He was an avid piano player and especially loved playing classical music as a way to relax. His children fondly recall hearing their dad play Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, and Tchaikovsky on the piano almost every night. He helped teach his grandson, Benjamin Coleman, how to play the piano beginning at age 3. He also loved to tend to his garden and ride his John Deere tractor.
Charles, affectionately known as Papa to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, leaves behind his wife of 66 years, Ann Fitch; his son Charles W. (Chuck) Fitch, II (Beth) of Leitchfield, Kentucky; his daughter Elizabeth Fitch Coleman (Will) of Collierville, Tennessee; nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his father, Charles Loraine Fitch and his mother, Ruby Riley Fitch of Paris, TN; his sister Juanita Barrows of Paris, TN; and his stepson Samuel A. Weeks, III of Memphis, TN.
The family held a small private gathering to celebrate and honor his well-lived life. Memorials for Dr. Fitch can be sent to a charity of the donor’s choice.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5668 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee 38119 (901) 767-8930. “Where Memphis comes to remember, since 1924.”
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