Robert (Bob) Elmer Ahrens was a gentle soul, never raising his voice or speaking a vulgar word. Although he was not born in the South, he was the epitome of a gentleman. Born Dec. 16, 1930 in Appleton, WI to Edwin and Hulda (Semrow) Ahrens. He passed away April 13, 2021 at the age of 90.
Bob graduated from Appleton High School in 1949. He served in the U.S. Army Artillery (Sgt. First Class), Camp Atterbury, Indiana and Camp McCoy, Wisconsin during the Korean Conflict. In the mid 50's, he and his family moved to Torrance, CA and worked in the Sheet Metal Trade. He attended Long Beach State College and UCLA Berkley until moving to Honolulu, Hawaii in 1961. He was employed by Continental Mechanical of the Pacific. Bob was a member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers and the Society of Plumbing Engineers.
While living in Hawaii for 30 years, Bob and his wife, Betty flew to all six of the Hawaiian Islands many times. He enjoyed hiking the mountains. He is a past member of the Elks Club and Hawaiian Power Boat Racing Association. He and his wife were involved in the Variety Club and the Don Ho Bed Racing Charity each year.
In 1991, Bob retired from the Continental Mechanical and moved to Victoria with Betty. In 1999, Betty passed away. Bob was a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church, the Model A Ford Club of America, The Golden Crescent Antique Car Club, Victoria County Czech Heritage Society and the American Legion Post #166.
He is preceded in death by his parents; second wife, Betty (Oubre) Ahrens; brothers, Melvin, Edwin, Jr., Derald “Bud” and James Ahrens; sister, Joan (Ahrens) Hoepper; sons, Jordan Ahrens and Nathan Ahrens; and daughter, Alicia Ahrens Miller.
He is survived by his wife, Simone Tipton; brother, Gary Ahrens of Appleton, WI; daughter, Cynthia Ahrens Garcia (Flavio) of Huntington Beach, CA; sisters-in-law, Janet Ahrens and Shila Ahrens of Appleton, WI; step-children, Jeff Thompson of Arneckeville, TX, Michelle Thompson Rapp (James) of Victoria, TX, Belinda Thompson (Joey) of Corpus Christi, TX; and grandchildren, nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends.
Memorial donations may be made to donor’s choice.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday, April 21st from 12-1pm at Rosewood Funeral Chapel, with funeral services to begin at 1pm. Burial will follow to Memorial Park Cemetery.
