Gordon Wright

Gordon Aug Wright, beloved husband, father and brother and loyal friend, died June 22, 2024, in Erlanger KY. He was 95.

Gordon was born at home in Cincinnati on Aug. 12, 1928, to Gordon and Anne (Klopstein) Wright. He had three younger sisters, Carol, Sue and Wally. Their mother came through Ellis Island from Germany as a 6-month-old in her mother’s arms.

After graduating high school, Gordon was drafted into the US Army. He was a radio operator stationed in Germany during the Korean War. Upon his return to the states he rose in rank to Sergeant major in the Army Reserve.

He married Marilyn Schwartz July 3, 1954, and together they raised three daughters. After Marilyn died in 1978, Gordon was married to Jean Cunningham from 1979 to 2021. With her four children, a blended family was made.

He worked for Cincinnati Bell for 40-plus years from the 1950s to the 1990s. After retiring, he and Jean traveled the world from their North Fort Myers, Fla., home. Gordon returned north after Hurricane Ian destroyed his home in September 2022.

Quick with a good-humored retort, Gordon is remembered for his pranks and occasional teasing. He loved a party and the lively company of friends, especially Bill Welland, with whom he was close from first grade until the end of his life. They liked to tinker with cars; together they popped many a car hood and bottle cap.

A lifelong political conservative, Gordon believed in building community through personal service. He was a mentor in Cincinnati Bell’s Junior Achievement program, in which men helped local boys learn crafts and skills. One of his fondest memories was helping on a two-week canoe trip in Michigan and Canada with the Boy Scouts of America. He was a Shriner, a Mason and a Jester.

Gordon liked classical and big band music. He was a patriotic American while still proud of his German heritage. He savored the traditional foods, especially Marilyn’s family recipes for potatoes au gratin and the legendary spaghetti sauce whose secret ingredient remains secure.

Gordon also found restoration in nature, spending hours rambling on family land in Woodstock, NY. He had a fondness for animals, dogs in particular. Those close to him know by heart the story of 3-year-old Gordon wandering into the middle of Hamilton Avenue, where the family’s German shepherd dog followed him and lay down in traffic, barking to stop the cars and alert his mother.

Gordon’s last great joy was watching the April 8 total eclipse of the sun. He talked about the awe and majesty of it for weeks.

He is survived by daughters Helen Wright-North (Bill Littleford) of Erlanger, Ky.; Gail (Dave) Sonneman of North Fort Myers, Fla., and Trina (Ken) Boggs of Greensboro, NC, and grandchildren Tara (Nico) Wright Harding of Louisville, Ky., Aaron (Rika) Sonneman, of Lehigh Acres, Fla., and Jen (Jordan) Van Houten, of Port Charlotte, Fla.

Those who wish to may donate in Gordon’s memory to the Cincinnati Zoo, www.cincinnatizoo.org.