Born in the Bronx, New York on May 9, 1933 to Luise and Fred Wetzel Sr, Fred Wetzel Jr. was raised in Trenton, NJ. and graduated from Trenton State University where he majored in P.E. and played on the basketball team.
He joined the US Navy in 1955 and served in the Active Reserves until 1975, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Commander. He was first stationed in Oahu,Hawaii where he played basketball for the base team and trained as a navigator. He was next stationed at McGuire Airforce base in New Jersey where navigated flights regularly to Paris, Madrid, London, and Frankfurt. He flew many memorable and story-worthy missions throughout Europe, Japan, and parts of Africa.
A handsome man in uniform, he attracted his wife, Maria Manco, at a restaurant on the New Jersey shore. They were married in 1964 at the Manhattan courthouse and moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1966 where he completed his service at the Dobbins Air Reserve in Marietta. They bought their first house together in Dunwoody in1967 where they raised three children and never moved..
Fred graduated from Georgia State University with a Masters of Finance and one of the original members of the Chartered Financial Analysts. He first joined Citizens and Southern National Bank (C&S), then Montag & Caldwell, and eventually was a consultant at Invesco. He later joined up with colleagues he had mentored over the years to form Cornerstone Investment Partners, LLC, where he retired at the age of 82.
Fred loved outlaw country music and would recite lyrics verbatim to listeners lucky enough to lend him their ear. The free-spirited, unapologetically nonconformist and often misunderstood cowboy motif matched Fred’s values. Fred appreciated people who were the “real deal” and warned us to be wary of “the man in the high-heeled Gucci shoes”.
One of the greatest joys of his life was becoming a grandfather to Dylan at age 80. Dylan said “BoBo” (his nickname for his grandfather) was his favorite person.
He is survived by his wife Maria Wetzel, his children Fred and Frank Wetzel of Dunwoody, GA, Marina and Andrew Bearman, of Berkeley, CA, his daughter-in-law Paula Marcet and grandson Dylan Wetzel of Dunwoody, GA, and his sister E. Susan Magill of Castle Rock, CO.
The family will receive friends on Wednesday, January 12, 2022 beginning at 10 o'clock and funeral services at 11 o'clock at H.M. Patterson & Son-Arlington Chapel,173 Allen Road Ne, Sandy Springs, GA 30328. He will be buried at the Georgia National Cemetery in Canton at 2 o'clock. Please consider honoring Fred by donating to Atlanta Habitat for Humanity.
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