Dr. Robert (Bob) Van Barrow, age 89, of Mobile, Alabama passed away peacefully on Thursday, March 6, 2025. Robert was born on January 15, 1936, in Crestview, Florida to the late Frederick and Mazie Barrow. He was a wonderful husband and father who served his country well having served in both the US Air Force as an enlisted Airman as well as the US Coast Guard Reserves as an officer attaining the rank of Captain before his retirement. His passion was teaching and mentoring students at his beloved University of South Alabama where he served for over fifty years retiring as the Political Science Department Chairman. He joined the faculty in 1966 when the university was in its infancy. His impact on our community reached far and wide, especially the Criminal Justice program which he founded. Thousands of students whose lives he touched remember him fondly as a man who truly cared about their futures!
The second oldest of nine children, he was born to a poor family during the Great Depression. He knew the value of hard work frequently retelling the story of plowing fields behind a stubborn mule to help put food on the table. A Christian all his life, he would attend a Bible School in Waxahachie, Texas his senior year of high school. After returning to Crestview, he soon joined the Air Force where he would become a Czech linguist stationed in West Germany during the Cold War. It was there that he met his soon to be wife, Margot Frank, a German girl who had previously resided in East Germany after the end of World War II. By the Grace of God, this happenstance saved his life. His announcement that he intended to marry her led to his losing his security clearance and him getting pulled off what was to be his last flight…the C-130 Hercules aircraft he was to board was shot down over Soviet Armenia on September 2, 1958 killing all 17 crew members aboard. The Cold War wasn’t always so cold…these men perished in the defense of freedom, something Robert never forgot! As a result, he loved his wife dearly for the remainder of his life!
After leaving the service, he and his new wife and son would return to Crestview and eventually move to Tallahassee, Florida where he would use the GI Bill to earn his Bachelors, Masters, and eventually PhD in political science. His daughter would join them there and soon the young family moved to Mobile, Alabama as his new career began at South Alabama. He loved both his children dearly and celebrated their accomplishments with pride and joy. An outstanding role model, he taught his children to never pass judgment and to treat everyone with dignity and respect. He showed compassion to all and led a Christian life by way of example. For him, character mattered, and it resonated with all who knew him.
Preceded in death by his wife, three brothers and one sister: Margot F. Barrow, James V. Barrow, Frederick W. Barrow, Thomas Barrow, and Nolica C. Barrow.
Survivors include his Children, Audrey Barrow and Robert “Frank” Barrow (Cheryl E. Barrow); Grandchildren Corey B. Kappler (Scott Kappler) and Lauren B. Lauer (Jonathan Lauer); Great Grandchildren Ella Kate Kappler, Caden Kappler, Liam Lauer, and Eliana Lauer; Siblings Margaret Ann Despaux, Johnny Barrow; Bobbie Jean Tunstall; and William Barrow.
The following individuals will be serving as Honorary Pallbearers: Scott Kappler, Caden Kappler, Jonathan Lauer, Liam Lauer, Ron Wilhelm, Robert Adams, Jerry Lathan, Wayne Wolf, Michael O’Bryan, and William Dean Lee.
A visitation for Robert will be held on Monday, March 17, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at Radney Funeral Home – Mobile, 3155 Dauphin Street, Mobile, AL 36606. Funeral Service will follow starting at 11:00 a.m. A private graveside service for family, former colleagues, and military veterans will occur Monday, March 17, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. at the Alabama State Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 34904 Alabama State Highway 225, Spanish Fort, AL, 36527.
In lieu of flowers the family suggest donations to St. Jude’s Children Research Hospital. https://www.stjude.org
