Chester B. Gabbard

Chester B. "Chet" Gabbard, 94, of Terre Haute passed away at 12:35 a.m. Sunday June 18, 2017 in Meadows Manor East in Terre Haute. He retired as a building and bridge forman for the SOO Line Railroad after many years of service. Prior to that he had been a landscaper for Bunch's Nursery at Terre Haute for many years and after retiring from the railroad he returned to landscaping for Metzger Landscaping for several years. He was born November 29, 1922 in Linton, IN to Charles Gabbard and Sara "Ella" Freeland Gabbard. Survivors include: His Wife of nearly sixty four years, Norma Jean Oricks Gabbard whom he married on July 7, 1953; two daughters Rose Garner and her husband John, and Debbie Adamson all of Terre Haute; six grandchildren: Jean Case (Bryan), Renee Garner, Chris Garner, Heather D'Auria (Michael), Rob Adamson (Emily), and Audrey Adamson Rice (Jimmy); twelve great grandchildren: Dakota Case, Dalton Case, Cheyanne Case, Dylan Case, Shai Garner (Chelsie), Shamar Garner, Isaiah D'Auria, Fedor D'Auria, Hazel Jane Adamson, Calvin Adamson, James Rice, and Charlie Rice; two great great grandchildren: fraternal twins Payton and Paisley Garner; and his beloved k9 companion Lucy Lou. He was preceded in death by his parents; a son-in-law Chuck Adamson; a sister; and three brothers. He was a WWII Veteran of the U.S. Army. Chet enjoyed hunting, fishing, and mushroom hunting. Funeral services to celebrate his life will be 11:00 a.m. Thursday in Fitzpatrick Funeral Home with Pastor Andy Fishback officiating. He will be laid to rest in Bethesda Memorial Park. Visitation will be 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday and 10:00 a.m. until service time Thursday. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Sugar Grove Free Methodist Church or the Terre Haute Humane Society with envelopes available in the funeral home. The family would also like to express their sincere gratitude to Meadows Manor East, Southern Care Hospice, Pastor Andy Fishback, and his wife Rachel of Sugar Grove Free Methodist Church. Each of you provided outstanding care, compassion, and love that enabled Chester and his family to feel at ease throughout his journey. A very special thank you to the CNA's and nurses who took the extra time to provide Chester with superb care. He loved you just the same as you loved him. We were very fortunate that you were the backbone of his care.