Memorial Service Announced for Rancho Mirage Mayor Pro Tem

A memorial service will be held Thursday for Rancho Mirage Mayor Pro Tem Gordon Moller.

The service will begin at 11 a.m. at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Cathedral City, 69855 E. Ramon Road, City Attorney Steve Quintanilla said.

Moller was 73 when he died of unspecified natural causes on Monday at Eisenhower Medical Center, with his partner of 42 years, Charles Townsend, at his side. The flag over City Hall was lowered to half-staff in his memory, according to a city statement.

The Minnesota native served four years in U.S. Navy and moved to California in 1960. Six years later, he and Townsend relocated from Pasadena to Rancho Mirage.

Moller and his partner co-owned and operated Charles Townsend Collection, a home furnishings and decor business, for 30 years, and Moller served 25 years as an executive with International Aluminum Corp.

Moller, who served two terms as president of the Rancho Mirage Chamber of Commerce, was appointed to the City Council to fill a vacancy in April 2006. He was elected to a four-year term in 2008 and re-elected in 2012, when he ran unopposed. He served as mayor pro tem in 2008, mayor in 2009, mayor pro tem this year, and was scheduled to become mayor again in 2013.

In addition to Townsend, Moller is survived by a sister, Marilyn Moller of Austin, Texas.