Uncle Bob

Uncle Bob was a true gentleman and we will miss him.  It was hard when his son Bobby passed; it was harder when we had to move Uncle Bob into a home to be with Aunt Dorothy who was suffering from dementia.  His passing is still under investigation and that makes it even harder to deal with the loss.  We all had moments while cleaning out their house and thinking about how alive it was at one time and now it was quiet.

The kids loved going to see Uncle Bob and Aunt Dorothy. I think maybe for the same reasons I enjoyed going to see my Great Grandmother, who also had stayed many years earlier at the same nursing home.  I remembered walking up and down the hallways and the Christmas Trees that were placed on every floor.  I always remember that we had to show up on her birthday for cake.  Bob and Dorothy seemed happy there but they also seemed to be happy as long as they were together.

The phone rang and they told us that Dorothy was fine but Bob just didn’t seem right and they were sending him to the hospital.  He did not go to the closest hospital; instead he came to one closer to us.  The reason was several people had been taken to the hospital from the nursing home.  The next several weeks were very scary and hectic as Uncle Bob fought and we learned more about what had happened.  Our understanding is that Uncle Bob was given a dose of drugs from someone.  Uncle Bob fought but eventually lost his battle.  I don’t want to go more into what happened at this point, one because it’s still under investigation and two, because I don’t want that to define Uncle Bob’s memory.

Uncle Bob was very fond of Jame Jack and taught him how to give the okay sign with his hand;s it

was very cute to see the two giving each other the okay sign.  Jame took Uncle Bob’s death pretty hard and would often just sit quietly or ask us not to talk about his passing.  Hope was also very fond of Uncle Bob,  she would hop up in his lap for those few moments that she would sit still.  Uncle Bob was also very happy to hear that we had named Rock after Grampy Rock.

Grampy Rock and Uncle Bob had a very special relationship.  They were actually cousins who were both only children.  Uncle Bob’s mom Mary and Grampy Rock’s dad Jim were siblings  When Bob was seven his mom passed away.  When his mom passed they moved closer to Grampy Rock and Aunt Nancy and Uncle Jim, Grampy Rock became very close just like brothers and that’s why we referred to him as Uncle Bob.  As Bob and Rock grew up they both shared more than an interest in sports.  They loved playing basketball and baseball together in high school and beyond.  The two of them got to see Da Bears win a Superbowl, the Blackhawks win five Stanley Cups and the Bulls win six championships, the White Sox win a World Series but sadly they never got to see their favorite Cubs win a world series.

Uncle Bob served in World War 2 in the Army as did Grampy Rock.  They were both part of the greatest generation.  Bob served in both the Asian and Pacific theatres during the war.  I’m sure if there were a basketball or a baseball they were both tossing it around.

When they returned from the war they wasted no time in picking up right where they left off.   They played at Thornton Junior College for two years and then Rock started his own team in the Industrial leagues named the Mercury’s.  They became a very well known team in both basketball and softball.

When they were in school Bob was quite a ladies’ man and they compared him to the actor Van Johnson.  Bob was also referred to as Swede since his dad was Swedish and Rock got his nickname from his last name of Rochfort.  Being such a ladies’ man helped when Bob left his job at Sherman Williams and started working at Wyman Gordon where he met Dorothy.  Not only was Bob a ladies’ man but he was a true gentleman and with the flash of his smile and a hardy handshake you were instantly friends.

If you ever met Bob and Dorothy you knew how much they loved each other.  They simply loved

being together.  They loved going to the Elks club and traveling and yes their traveling included Las Vegas for gambling and when the boats opened up in the Chicago area they visited most of them.

Bob once helped Rock get a job when he was between jobs but he told Rock it would help him if he dyed his hair.  He told him that by getting rid of the gray he would look younger; Rock agreed and dyed his hair.  Rock got the job and when he started fellow co workers asked him why he dyed his hair.  Rock told them it was his crazy cousin’s idea and he has no idea why he listened to him.  They all got a good laugh at their antics.

Bob was always there to lend a hand.  When Auntie Jame first went into her coma many of their friends and family stayed away not knowing how to handle it.  Not Bob, he was right there to help out any way he could.  No one thought it was possible but what happened to Auntie Jame and Bob stepping up to be there actually brought Bob and Rock and both of their families closer.

When his son Bobby passed away we could see Bob slip into a bit of depression.  When his brother Rock passed away you could see his will to live slip away.  He stayed strong for Dorothy but as she slipped farther into dementia Bob’s depression seemed to grow.  He was truly happy and smiled when we told him our new son was named Rock.  With a tear in his eye and a smile on his face he simply gave us the Okay hand gesture, he had taught to Jame.

Bob’s funeral service was  beautiful.  He was buried at Abraham Lincoln Cemetery.  We arrived at the cemetery to see the hearse with the flag draped coffin in the back.  We followed it out to a pavilion near his final resting place where they held his service.   They had asked if I would be a pallbearer and I agreed but I also had Jame help me since he was so touched by Uncle Bob’s passing. I was very proud of the little gentleman he has become.  He listened and fulfilled his duties and I know Uncle Bob was not only smiling but also honored to have him be a pallbearer.   Uncle Bob was honored with a 21 gun salute and taps played on a bugle with an echo and flag ceremonially folded and presented.  Tears flowed from our eyes as at the ceremony; I don’t know how anyone can’t get emotional being at a military funeral.

It’s always sad when we lose another member of the greatest generation who gave up so much of themselves to defend our freedom. Thank You for your service Uncle Bob.  I do wish the kids had more time to get know Uncle Bob and the man he was.  I will miss his smile and his hardy handshake that made you feel right at ease with him.  I hope that Jame and Rock will become gentlemen just like Uncle Bob.