Robert L. Putze

Published 7:06 pm Tuesday, November 3, 2015

FRANKLIN — Dr. Robert L. Putze, 82, passed away on Oct. 31, 2015, at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.

Dr. Robert L. Putze

Born in Richmond and raised in Danville, he was a son of the late Charles E. Putze Sr. and Bertha Elizabeth Bragg Putze.

He was a 1951 graduate of George Washington High School and a 1955 graduate of NC State with dual degrees in nuclear and chemical engineering. Dr. Putze graduated from the Medical College of Virginia in 1959, and was married on June 13, 1959, to Claudette Victoria Golderos. Following a one-year residency in Omaha, he began a three-year residency at Norfolk General Hospital. In 1963, he moved to Franklin to join Dr. Gordon Birdsong in the practice of obstetrics and gynecology and remained in practice until his retirement in 2002.

Dr. Putze loved his wife, children, grandchildren, family and all animals, especially his dogs and cats. He enjoyed gardening, photography, cooking, drawing and working in the yard. He was a volunteer at The Restore (Habitat For Humanity) and always enjoyed seeing his former patients and their children. Dr. Putze was a member of Franklin Baptist Church and The Blackwater Art League.

Dr. Putze is survived by his wife of 56 years, Claudette G. Putze; a daughter, Alice Taylor, her husband, Sam, and their children, Charlie and Layne, of Richmond; two sons, Robert Putze and his wife, Jill, and their children, Caroline, Robbie and Victor Putze, all of Raleigh, North Carolina; a sister, Norma Jo Putze Powell, and her husband, Raymond (Gene), of Riner, Virginia, and their children, Dave Powell and his wife, Lou Ann, and Kathy Natoce and her husband, Russ; a brother, Charles E. Putze Jr. of Danville and his son, Michael Putze, and his wife, Leslie.

In addition to his parents, Dr. Putze was predeceased by a sister-in-law, Nancy Putze.

The memorial service will be at 2 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 6, in Wright Funeral Home with the Rev. Steve Gibson officiating.

The reception will follow the service in the Franklin Baptist Church Fellowship Hall.

The family requests, in lieu of flowers, memorials in Dr. Putze’s name be made to any SPCA, Habitat for Humanity or any favorite charity.

www.wrightfuneralhome.org.