David Fletcher Harper

David Fletcher Harper Obituary (For website)
David Fletcher Harper (January 2, 1940 – March 8, 2024)
David Fletcher Harper was born on January 2, 1940 to Norma and Fletcher Harper in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
David grew up in Rocky Mount where he was active in his church, school and community, acting as an editor of his high school newspaper and achieving the rank of Eagle in the Boyscouts, earning him a trip to the national Scout Jamboree in California. In his early years as a Boyscout, David applied his skills to save a girl from drowning in a rip tide at a nearby beach receiving a national award for his heroism. David attended Wilkinson Elementary and R.M. Wilson Jr. High, finishing his primary education at Rocky Mount Senior High School, where he played basketball and was one of the outstanding seniors of his class in addition to his work on the school paper. He and his family were also long-time members of Marvin United Methodist Church.
David attended the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill starting in 1958, earning a Morehead Scholarship and graduating with a degree in psychology. During his time as a Tar Heel, he was a member of the Chi Psi Fraternity.
Soon after graduating, David moved to New York to work in the textile business where he met his first wife, Carolyn McComsey of Queens Village, New York They were married on September 19, 1965 in New York. Through his business associates, David was chosen to manage a new branch for Standard Textile in Denver, Colorado. He and Carolyn moved in 1966 to the Mile High city. While there, David and Carolyn had two children, Andrew Harper in 1970 and Brandy Harper in 1972. David eventually bought White Star Linen Service which supplied linen services to hospitals, hotels and resorts.
In 1994, Carolyn and David parted ways, and David returned to Rocky Mount to be with his family and his father, Fletcher, who faced the final years of his life. When Fletcher passed, David remained in North Carolina making his home in High Point for several years.
His son, Andy, joined him in North Carolina in 2002. When Andy returned to Las Vegas a couple of years later to complete his graduate work at University of Nevada, David joined him, spending most of his remaining years there. While in Vegas, he met Evelyn Lewis, and they were married in November of 2007. The both of them were loving grandparents to Ford, Norma, Fletcher, and Gyan. In 2018, David and Evelyn moved to Sacramento to live with Andy and his wife Abhilasha. getting a chance to help Gyan and Fletcher grow. David passed away on March 8, 2024.
David is preceded in death by his parents, Norma Knight Harper and Fletcher Martin Harper. He is survived by his sisters, Olivia Johnson and Hannah Harper; his brother, Harry Harper; his two children Andrew Harper (54) and Brandy Harper Jackson (52); his daughter-in-law, Abhilasha Wadhwa; his son-in-law, Scott Jackson; and his grandchildren Scott Jackson, Jr. (Ford) (14), Norma Jackson (12), Fletcher Harper-Wadhwa (11), and Gyan Harper-Wadhwa (7).
David passed away peacefully of natural causes on March 8, 2024. David was a beloved father, grandfather, brother and son, and a man with a happy heart who loved God every day. Though his last couple of years were difficult, he will always be remembered for the joy he brought to all of us, and the way he let us all know that he loved us.
A service celebrating David’s Life will be held on July 5, 2024 at 10 a.m. at Rocky Mount Memorial Park, in Rocky Mount, NC.