Frederick “Fred” Marshall Dittmar, 85, of Norman Oklahoma went to be with the Lord on October 6, 2023. Frederick was born November 22, 1937 in Plymouth, MA, to Frederick Dittmar and Beatrice (Canning). Fred is preceded in death by his parents; Frederick and Beatrice Dittmar, grandparents; Alonso and Francis Canning, Frederick Dittmar Jr. and Caroline Dittmar.
Left to cherish his precious memory are his wife; Margaret Carole (Whipple) Dittmar, sister, Caroline Dittmar, children; Annette, F. Mark, and Adrienne (Dittmar) Thomas, grandchildren; Katie, Emily, and Kristi Thomas.
Fred worked most of his professional life as an animal coordinator at OU and the OKC Zoo. Fred was a patriot who loved his country. He was proud of his years of service in the United States Air Force.
He had a unique honor bestowed when he was Coordinator of Primates at the Oklahoma City Zoo. In 1974, the zoo administrators named a newborn gorilla, Fredrika, after Fred. Today, Fredrika resides in the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
Following in his father’s footsteps, Fred joined the Plymouth (MA) Masonic Lodge in 1959 - as soon as he met the minimum age requirement for membership. In the next 64 years, he received many Masonic awards for special achievements. Much of his time was spent working in the Scottish Rite, an Affiliate Body of Freemasonry. He was awarded the distinction of Knight Commander Court of Honor and was recognized as a 33rd Degree (Honorary) Mason.
Fred Dittmar was a Charter Member of the Knights of St. Andrew, a service organization within the Scottish Rite. There, he was a founder of the Koins4Kids charity fund, honored as Secretary Emeritus, and awarded the organizations Lifetime Achievement Award.
Active in the beginnings of the Knights of St. Andrew, Fred established and maintained a website for the expansion of the Order. Under his guidance, the list of active chapters grew from two in 1993 to 179 today.
In recent years, Fred served as a volunteer in his community’s Citizen’s Police Academy, promoting public relations and harmony between the department and the populus through better understanding of roles and procedures.
Fred lived his life caring and serving others, enjoying his hobbies of bird watching meditating to classical music and working in his flower garden. A man with a big heart, he also loved his family, friends, pets, and would like to be remembered for his generosity and giving of his time to resources for others.
In lieu of flowers Dittmars ask that donations be made to the Rite Care Center, c/o Guthrie Scottish Rite at 900 E Oklahoma Ave., PO Box 70 Guthrie, Ok 73044.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.primrosefuneralservice.com for the Dittmar family.
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