Warbird Information Exchange

Theodore Harbison Gardner, age 91, of Hyde Park died peacefully on November 28, 2012. Beloved husband of 60 years of Naomi Andrews Gardner. Loving father of Melinda A. Gardner, Theodore A. Gardner (Juliann), Whitten A. Gardner (Barbara) and grandfather of Laura D., Grace L., Elizabeth A., and Katherine F. Gardner. Born in Hillsboro, Oregon, Ted was a graduate of Oregon State University. He was a proud and decorated Navy veteran of World War II, serving on the U.S.S. Kalinin Bay. He was an active member of the U.S. Navy League, The Hornet Foundation and was a member of the Advisory Board of the [Tri-State] Warbird Museum. Ted was a consummate community volunteer. He interviewed over 150 World War II veterans and recorded and videotaped their stories for the Cincinnati Public Library and for the U.S. Library of Congress. Ted was a 30 year member of the Cincinnati Rotary Club. He shared his vocal talents as a member of the Rotary Chorus, the Choir of the Church of the Redeemer and the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus, where he served as a Board Member. Ted was an historian, a lover of art and literature, and an avid sports enthusiast.

BRIDGETOWN — When Clifford H. Dornette Jr. got involved in something, he stuck with it.

Mr. Dornette, a retired savings and loan executive, died Dec. 28 of pancreatic cancer, a week short of his 90th birthday and several months before his 70th wedding anniversary.

As a World War II Army Air Corps pilot, he flew 26 missions over China and what is now Myanmar, formerly Burma.

He was a member of the Dornettes, a German family that emigrated to the Cincinnati area and eventually founded a desk company and later a savings and loan. Mr. Dornette was president of the Central Progressive Savings Association from the 1960s until he retired in the early 1980s.

At age 60, he decided he needed more exercise than golf was giving him, so he started running 5Ks and frequently won races in his age group. Running an average of 25 miles a week helped him recover from bouts of cancer, first in his kidneys and later in his lungs, family members said.

“He did every 5K run known to man,” said his son Bud Dornette of Sayler Park.

Mr. Dornette also participated in the Rotary Club of Cincinnati, a service organization, for about 52 years, his family said.

Mr. Dornette grew up in Cincinnati’s West End. He was related to the founders of the Dornette Desk Co. in Cincinnati’s West End. They built desks for the federal government during World War I. Today, some Dornette desks are valuable collectibles; one is on display at the Cincinnati Museum Center.

Mr. Dornette’s father, Clifford Dornette I, headed what was the Central Fairmount Building and Loan. Savings and loans were popular in Hamilton County. Many got their start in the 1880s as German savings leagues. Members would meet weekly in beer parlors, make “deposits” and then hold a lottery. The winning ticket holder could then borrow from the deposits to buy a home.

The savings and loan business changed dramatically over the years, but Hamilton County continued to be a hub, said Bud Dornette, assistant vice president at Cincinnatus Savings and Loan. He said Hamilton County had 167 savings and loans operating when he started in the business in 1975.

While attending Western Hills High, Mr. Dornette supported his family by working at a machine factory. He finished high school and attended a year of college at Miami University before he joined the Army in 1943.

Mr. Dornette recently told a researcher that he had no dreams or expectations of being a pilot.

“Dad didn’t really want to fly, but it was the war and you had to do something,” Bud Dornette said, recalling his father’s rare comments about the war. “He joined the Army, passed a test and became a pilot.”

He flew mostly B-25s. He served until 1946 and, at age 22, was considered one of the most experienced B-25 pilots at the time. He told his son, “You do what you can, and if you come back alive, you get on with your life,” Bud Dornette said.

Later, after Mr. Dornette came home and moved up in the savings and loan, he continued flying small, private planes for fun. He also was president of the Tristate Savings and Loan Association and was on the Federal Home Loan Bank board.

In addition to his son, survivors include his wife, Elizabeth “Bette” Ann Dornette of Bridgetown; another son, John Jeffrey Dornette of Villa Hills; a daughter, Ann Ammann of Cleves; five grandchildren; and 13 great-grandchildren.