Memories of my uncle Bob. 

When I was young I remember uncle Bob coming over @ dinner time , parking his  CHP motorcycle in front of our house and all of the neighborhood kids standing on the sidewalk just looking at him and how big & tall he was. I always remember him entering the house and the first thing that he would do is take off his gun belt and place it up on the refer high out of our reach until he left to go back to work.

When I was @ 14 years, old uncle Bob teemed up with a fellow contractor named Ron Conely and took me to work on my first construction job site.  My jobs were cleaning out foundation trenches, packing form lumber to the trench perimeters, and holding boards while they formed up foundation walls. I still remember my first taste of lemon water that was passed out at break time. Although I didn't know at the time, this is where the seed was planted for how I would make my living and my career in construction.

I remember one day when I was @ 16 years old, uncle Bob and Ron Conley called me up to ask me to work on on a demolition job the next day. Of course I said yes and met them the next morning ready for work.  We took two trucks which was unusual, and drove to a nice house with a three car garage. Once out of the trucks I was handed a pair of gloves, a large wrecking bar, the truck keys to a flatbed truck, and a sludge hammer.  Uncle Bob said that they were going to another job, but I was to stay there and break out all of the driveway into pieces, hand load the pieces onto the truck, and drive it to a local landfill and dump it.  They told me to drink lots of water and they would be back before dark to pick me up.  I did as I was told but remember being so weak that I was shaking during the day. Uncle Bob was not afraid of hard work, and he taught me the same.

When I was @ 18 years old Uncle Bob and Ron started teaching me to build larger houses.  He taught me the process, order of operations, how to use my tools,set goals, not to be afraid of work that I had not done before, and how to watch and learn.

When I was in my early 20's, I started working for the union on much larger tilt up concrete and multi story office building type jobs doing mostly roof structure work.  I was always one of the first guys hired and the last guys to get 
laid off because I was taught by uncle Bob how to work hard and how to work safe.

As I got older, I started building and rebuilding my own properties.  Uncle Bob helped on a great many of these projects. Some of them were the new Neal Road home, the Shell Street duplex, the Ocean house downstairs, the Harris duplex, and my fathers Donner Lake home where he fell.

Uncle Bob didn't just teach me, but my friends too. I don't know if he knew it or not but one of my friends that he taught plumbing and electrical to, got his contractors license and started a business doing gas station plumbing and electrical contracting. This would not have happened if he hadn't taken the time to teach others his trades.

Special times:

I remember one day while working on an open roof in an attic, we saw some guy smash out uncle Bobs truck window and steel his new cell phone. Uncle Bob jumped out of the attic, ran down the roof, slid down the ladder, and chased the guy down an alley until he couldn't see the guy any more. Uncle Bob never got his cell phone back, but I learned that he could run really fast.
 
I remember the day Uncle Bob asked me to hold a 16d nail for him so he could set it, he was in an awkward position. I did as he asked and held the framing nail for him as he swung at the nail and missed hitting my thumb.(splat)  He was very sorry and we wrapped it with tissue and electrical tape and finished out the day.  I was never going to let uncle Bob see me be a whiner or a quitter, "I was a real Man". When I got home that night my wife Linda had to take me to the hospital to repair my thumb because the pain was so bad. I was a wimp, and learned that you do not ever hold anyone's nails.
 
Lastly, I remember driving up to a multi-family project that I was building with uncle Bob. I had just recently left a company to start my own and money was real tight on this project. It was a rainy morning and as we got out of our trucks we saw that someone had smashed out 37 windows on the project and I had no insurance to cover it. Uncle Bob saw that I was about ready to cry, and he said "it's ok, we'll fix them." Nothing could stop his "drive" and he taught me that quality too.

I'll miss the smell of his cigar on the job site and his hardy Laugh when he thought something was funny.

Uncle Bob was not only my uncle, but my work partner, my mentor and mostly my friend.  I'll miss him.

Michael Hunkins

Becky
I am sorry to hear of Bob passing.
Forgive me for missing his funeral.
               Jacinto Jack

Dear Hunkins Family,

I am so sorry to hear of the loss, of your husband, dad, grandpa, great grandpa, father in law, uncle and much more. I know how much he was loved and will be missed.

Love,
Jacci

Becky, Suzanne, Shawn & Scott:   I am so very sorry to hear of this news.  Growing up with Suzanne and spending a lot of time at your home, I remember Bob as a strong and very laid back man. (Well with Suzanne, I think he had to be :)).  But always can feel the love he had for his family.   I pray that God brings you all peace during this difficult time.  You will be in our prayers.

OBITUARIO

Robert William Hunkins

4 noviembre, 1935 – 3 marzo, 2016

Lambert Funeral Home

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