Obituary of Carl Lyle Fish

CARL LYLE FISH

June 21, 1957-July 15, 2020

Beloved Husband, Brother, Uncle and Friend.

 

Carl was born in Redding, England along with this fraternal

twin brother Jack Jr. to an American father, stationed

overseas in the US Air Force, and an Irish national mother.

While they were still quite young the whole family moved

to the states and the family continued to grow with the

addition of sister, Valerie, brother William “Billy” and

youngest brother R. Scott Orrtel.

At the end of his Service commitment, Jack Fish Sr. settled

the family in Tucson, Arizona where the kids grew up and flourished making many lifelong friendships.

 

Carl went to Doolen middle school and Catalina High School, eventually deciding to join the US Air Force and completing his GED in Hawaii.

He was stationed at Hickam AFB, Hawaii, along with his childhood friend, Patrick Dunleavy, from June 1976 to June 1978.  He then went to a post in Shemya, Alaska where he completed his enlistment contract and left the Air Force, returning to Tucson to start a new chapter in his life.

Upon returning to Tucson, Carl worked odd jobs until landing a position with Pima County in the Fleet Services shops as a radio technician.  He attended classes at Pima Community College to sharpen his electronic skills and broaden his knowledge base making him a continued asset to the county.  While working there, he made many friends from different divisions and agencies throughout Pima county and the State of Arizona.  This led to him bringing his work home with him at times, where he would complete custom vehicle installations for law enforcement and first responder officers with his long-time friend Robert Charlton.

One of his closest alliances was with officers and command staff at the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.  After 25 years in his radio shop position, the radio shops were taken over by IT, converting the entire system from analog to digital and reducing the number of staff in the process leaving him without a job.  Carl was welcomed into the Sheriff’s department as an employee for the Corrections Division and worked at the Adult Detention Center in various positions until finally retiring from the Department in May of 2020 for a career total of 30 years of service.

Carl was preceded in death by his father and brother Jack L. Fish Sr. and Jack L. Fish Jr. in addition to his step-father William “Bill” Orrtel.

He leaves his wife of nearly 32 years, Meri Frances Steffen-Fish; sister Valerie Ross (Steve Ross); brother William “Bill” H. Fish (Suzanne “Sue”) and brother Scott Orrtel (Mindy) in addition to his nieces Dympna, Julie, Dorothy, Erin and Carrie along with his nephew Paul and countless friends.

We will miss his wit, sense of humor and wise counsel.

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