SOUTHPORT — Paul Nathaniel Pittenger Jr., 90, passed away peacefully Monday, April 24, 2017, at his home surrounded by his family.
Mr. Pittenger was born in Statesville, N.C., Sept. 18, 1926, son of the late Paul Nathaniel Pittenger Sr. and Mildred Hall Pittenger. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He received his music degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Mr. Pittenger taught math and music at Southport High School and music at Milton High School, Alpharetta, Ga. He played the French horn with the Chattanooga Symphony, and the Greensboro Orchestra, and was founder and conductor of Bowie State Orchestra, Maryland.
Upon retirement from the Social Security Administration in Maryland, he and his wife, Patricia Arrington Pittenger, moved to Southport, devoting themselves to volunteer work in the performing arts.
He was founder and conductor of the Brunswick Concert Band. For over 20 years, Mr. Pittenger’s performing included accompanying and acting with Brunswick Little Theater. Along with his wife, he designed and built his dream home in Southport.
Mr. Pittenger was preceded in death by his three sisters, Mildred Mitchell, Lucy Smith and Julia Pittenger.
Survivors include his wife of 63 years, Patricia; daughter, Erinn Pittenger Hughes, and her husband, Rusty, of Southport; sons, Paul Eldridge Pittenger, and his wife, Nancy, of Sunset Harbor, Eric Hall Pittenger of Southport and David Douglas Pittenger, and his wife, Jennifer, of Elkins Park, Pa.; grandchildren, Thomas Hughes (Mimi), Greer Hughes (Lindsey), Melissa Capps, Abbey Capps, Hayley Pittenger (and mother, Geryl Pittenger), Mia and Matthew Thorsen and Julia Pittenger; great-grandchildren, Rowan and Harbor Hughes and Savannah and Emma Britt; sister-in-law, Stuart Arrington Callari and family; and nieces and nephews, John Mitchell (Rachel), Paul Mitchell (Paige), Millie Steinbrecher (Alan), Terry Smith (Joe), Paul Smith (Bonnie), Jim Rogers, Katherine Lavery (Hank) and Susan MacAuley (Pat).
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to SECU Hospice of Brunswick, 955 Mercy Lane, Bolivia, N.C. 28422; or St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, 205 E. Moore Street, Southport, N.C. 28461.
Online condolences may be made at peacocknewnamwhite.com.