Hermann Karl Orlet, MD

Martinez, GA – Entered into rest on Thursday, March 6, 2026, Hermann Karl Orlet, MD, 86, loving husband of Marianne Dorothea Orlet (nee Klingeberg).

Born April 9, 1939 in Brno, Czechoslovakia to Karl and Etelka Orlet, Hermann enjoyed a brief childhood that ended when his father was drafted into the war and became a POW and the enemy forced his family out of their home. The family became refugees, and he became the man of the house. A six month odyssey later, they reached the safety of West Germany eventually settling in Kassel. At age seven, invited to a post-church lunch with another family, he encountered their likewise-aged daughter, Marianne. He proposed marriage to her. She ran away. They would marry in 1961.

While in Kassel, he carried the Olympic torch on its way to the games. The Orlet family immigrated to the United States in 1955 and settled in Toledo, Ohio. Hermann graduated from the University of Toledo where he played football for the Rockets. He then went to medical school at Loma Linda University, which was followed by a tour in the USAF where he indulged his lifelong passion for medicine and flight simultaneously, as flight surgeon for the 38th TAC Reconnaissance Squadron in Ramstein, Germany. His son, Gerhard, was born in 1967, and at the end of Hermann’s tour, the family moved to Santa Barbara, California, where he opened his plastic surgery practice. Local economics forced a move in 1982. Hermann joined the US Army, which moved him to Martinez, Georgia. After his military commitment, Hermann partnered with Joseph Still. Together, they built the JMS Burn Center which, at its zenith was the largest such facility in the United States. Hermann’s employment with the JMS Burn Centers ended in 2025, but his heart never left. The cornerstones of his life were his faith, integrity, work ethic, and loyalty. Hermann was an avid sportsman. He loved to play tennis, soccer, and later, golf. He loved the arts, specifically opera, and he traveled whenever he could. Charismatic, conscientious, and compassionate, Hermann invested of himself in everyone; never regarded anyone as subordinate and was a consummate storyteller; always with a joke at hand. His only love greater than that for the people with whom he worked and patients he treated was his love for his family and his absolute devotion to his wife, a romance which can only be characterized as fairy-tale. His life was not merely a testament to dedication and hard work; his life was led by the Lord and he knew it. Now he has gone home.

In addition to his wife, family members include his son: Gerhard Orlet; grandchildren: Ashley Orlet and Alexander Orlet; sister, Erika Orlet; and brother Wilhelm Orlet (Loni).

The funeral service will be held Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. at the Chapel of Thomas Poteet and Son with Rev. Mark Maund officiating. Interment will follow in Westover Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be Gerhard Orlet, Alexander Orlet, Kevin Lack, Frank Mullins, Shawn Hammond, and Gary Nistler.

The funeral will be livestreamed at https://together.oneroomstreaming.com/37ZU3B

Memorial contributions may be made to the Burn Foundation of America, 3614 J Dewey Gray Cir Building #C, Augusta, GA 30909.

The family will receive friends on Thursday, March 12, 2026 from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. at Thomas Poteet & Son Funeral Directors, 214 Davis Rd., Augusta, GA 30907 (706) 364-8484. Please sign the guestbook at www.thomaspoteet.com