'Still in shock': Leonard 'Pete' Fletcher, longtime Augusta school board attorney, dies at 77

The man who guided Richmond and Columbia County School Systems on all matters from school integration to tax mills and construction contracts has died.

Leonard "Pete" Fletcher died Tuesday, Sept. 13. He served as RCSS's legal counsel for 50 years and as Columbia County's for 30.

In a statement, RCSS wrote, "Mr. Fletcher has been instrumental in making sure that our actions and decisions are always in the best interest of the children of Richmond County. Mr. Fletcher’s passing is a tremendous loss to the State of Georgia, our school system, and our community. Our heartfelt condolences and thoughts are with the Fletcher family and the many friends and community members who love him."

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Fletcher had deep roots in Augusta's schools. He attended the county's schools and was named to the Academy of Richmond County's hall of fame in 2019. Soon after graduating, he started doing isolated casework for the district in 1971. He was a key player in integrating the area's schools. He continued to be vocal about addressing racial inequities ever since.

"There should be no black schools or white schools, just schools," Fletcher said in a 1994 Augusta Chronicle article.

"I think I learned more about the plight of Black people in Georgia from Pete than I learned through my years in school," said Charlie Hannah, who is Black and the school board's president. "'At the end of the day,' he would say 'we don't want anyone to feel like we're doing them a disservice.'"

But Fletcher's legal expertise didn't stop at racial issues. Hannah said Fletcher was one of the best attorneys that specialized in education throughout the state, and he lent his knowledge and skills to other organizations like the Columbia County Board of Education, the Augusta Bar Association and the Georgia School Board Association's Executive Council.

"I've always tried to be straight-forward with them, above-board and honest," Fletcher said in an interview with the Augusta Chronicle in 1987. "I think it's worked out pretty well."

In 1989, he co-founded the Augusta based law firm Fletcher, Harley & Fletcher, where he continued to be a senior partner until his death.

When Fletcher was not working on a board or in a courtroom, he was known to enjoy spending time with his family. He married his high school sweetheart, Kay, in 1966. The two share a daughter, Kim, a son, Owen, and multiple grandchildren.

Fletcher was also known as a wine connoisseur, a grill master, and a passionate musician. Richmond County school board member Jimmy Atkins recalled one instance years back when Fletcher and the other musical family members gave his daughter a surprise for her 50th birthday party.

"Kim's favorite performer is Prince and they had a Prince impersonator come in and the Fletcher boys backed up the Prince impersonator. That was a night I'll never forget," Atkins said.

No information has ben released on who will be providing the school boards legal counsel going forward.

"As a person, Pete was just a great human being," Hannah said.

"I'm still in shock to some degree," Atkins said. "Anytime I called him, he was always willing to listen. Anytime I had a question, he was always there to answer it, and with Pete, I didn't feel like he looked at me as a board member, I really think he looked at me as a friend, as I did him."

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Pete Fletcher, longtime Augusta school board attorney, dies at age 77