J. Robert Blizzard

J. Robert “Bob” Blizzard, originally from Philadelphia, died Aug. 24, 2010, in Denver, CO, where he has lived since 2005. Relatively healthy until a few days before his 90th birthday on Feb. 26, 2010, Bob fell and never fully recovered. Although the last six months were difficult for him, he retained his gentle spirit. Bob was preceded in death by his father Samuel Wilson Blizzard Sr.; his mother Lucy Alice Fisher Blizzard; older brother Samuel Wilson Blizzard Jr.; stepfather Wilbur O. Tinley, and stepbrother John H. “Jack” Tinley.

Born the middle child of three (younger sister, Maryjane, and older brother, Sam), Bob lived with his family in Philadelphia and Upper Darby, PA. Summers growing up were special for young Bobby. He helped run the family’s amusement park ride, The Tumble Bug, on Burlington Island on the Delaware River. Bobby loved his dog, Bossy K, and was fascinated by anything and everything mechanical. He was exceptionally smart and made top grades in school, graduating from Glen-Nor High School, in Glenolden, PA, in 1938.

In 1930, when Bobby was 10, his father, who was a riverboat pilot on the Delaware River, died suddenly and unexpectedly. He and his siblings lived with various relatives while his mother Lucy worked to support the family. When Bob was 14, his mother married Wilbur Tinley, who was a railroad engineer.

After graduating from high school, Bob was accepted at Princeton University, and had a partial scholarship from Pennsylvania Railroad, and worked a part-time job in the dining hall on campus. Bob, who earned a degree in chemical engineering in 1942, made lifelong friends at Princeton and participated in sports, including lacrosse and rowing.

After college, Bob joined DuPont in Richmond, VA. He later moved to Buffalo, NY, because he was selected to work on the Manhattan Project, a project conducted during World War II to develop the first atomic bombs.

In the mid-1950s, Bob accepted a job in Chicago, where he worked for 35 years. He earned his master’s degree from the University of Chicago, and met the love of his life Dee Habenicht. They were married Sept. 29, 1959, and lived in a little red house in Arlington Heights, where they raised their two children, Susan and Scott.

A quiet, thoughtful man, Bob was an avid traveler all his life. Among his stops in the western United States were the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest Olympia National Park and Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. He loved the outdoors and took weekend camping trips. In 1967, Bob had an opportunity to take his family on a business trip to Europe, where they visited London, Madrid, Toledo, Rome, Florence and Frankfurt.

Bob loved cars, with his two favorites a '57 red Chevy convertible and a '66 red three-speed Mustang. He enjoyed raising his two children and actively participated in their lives. He wrote notes to Susan’s and Scott’s elementary-school teachers each year, thanking them for the good job they did. When Scott was in Cub Scouts, Bob was the pack’s Scoutmaster. He also was a member of the kids’ made-up club, “Paper, Envelope and Stamp.” Bob was an fervent reader and shared his love of books with his children and grandson, Jordan.

When Scott moved to California to complete his college education, Bob accompanied him on the trip. When Susan moved to California, her father went with her and they did, “stand on a corner in Winslow, Arizona,” as The Eagles tune “Take It Easy” played in the background.

Bob also loved his pets. He and Dee had dogs, cats and an aquarium full of fish. One of their most exceptional dogs was a collie named Ladd. On one winter evening in 1969, as Bob was jogging with Ladd, Bob slipped on the ice, and fell and hit his head. While his master sat dazed on the sidewalk, Ladd ran home and led Dee back to the spot where Bob was waiting.

Bob liked jazz music, strawberry ice cream, hollyhocks and paper-whites, and a good pun. He was an enthusiastic stamp collector and collected first-cover stamps from the 1950s through 1990. He was kind and gentle, led by example, and didn’t have to raise his voice to get his point across. He treated everyone equal, preferring to see them for what they had inside. A lifelong Christian, Bob believed in God and followed Christ’s teachings. He was humble and lived out of the spotlight. Bob took care of his family and friends, was there when you needed him and always had solid advice.

When Bob retired from work in 1990, Dee and Susan held a surprise party for him with very special out-of-town guests: Bob’s sister Maryjane, his sister-in-law Harriet; and son Scott. Although there was a big snowstorm that day and many flights were delayed, our guests eventually arrived, and each time Bob answered the door, the look of surprise on his face was priceless.

Bob and Dee moved to Colorado in 2005, and lived next door to Scott. Their grandson Jordan lived with them during his 8th-grade school year and recently commented it was “the best year of school I’ve ever had.”

We miss his smile, gentle manner, and his sense of humor here on earth. But his family knows and is comforted by the idea that when he arrived in Heaven, he was reunited with his father, mother, brother, brother-in-law George Thurston, great nephew Jonathan Barch, and his many beloved pets, including Bossy K, Ladd, Muggins, General Greenfeather, Flipper, Twistafur, Bo, Coco and others.

Bob is survived by his wife Dee; son Scott; daughter Susan and grandson Jordan Spatafora; sister Maryjane Thurston, her children Becky Barch (Doug), Karen Chavez (Joaquin) and family, Bob Thurston (Linda) and family; and Lee Thurston (Eydie) and family; sister-in-law, Harriet Blizzard, and her children Jane Gorman, and Jim and their children.; and niece and nephew, John and Elizabeth Tinley.

We know he is watching over us and is in a much better place. We were privileged to have him here on earth; he indeed lived a wonderful life!