Robert Dowd Palmer

Robert Dowd Palmer was born on July 17, 1953 to Mary Jane Palmer & George Palmer in New York City. Robert grew up in the Long Island hamlet of Sayville with his six siblings. The family would go sailing in the Great South Bay, where Robert spent his youth clamming. He often reflected that those were some of the best years of his life.

Robert graduated from Sayville High School and began his undergraduate studies at Arizona State University. He transferred to SUNY New Paltz, and after graduating in 1975, he attended St. John’s Law School where he obtained his Juris Doctor.

Robert worked for 30 years at the Office of the New York City Comptroller, enforcing labor law to ensure that laborers working for City contractors were paid the prevailing wage under the law. It was important to Robert that these oft-unrepresented laborers receive their due wages. Robert also did pro-bono work in small claims court.

In 1991, when he noticed a woman looking confused just outside a subway station in lower Manhattan, Robert introduced himself and directed her to her destination, but not before asking if she would like to go out with him at some point. Robert and Janis had lunch a few days later and started dating. In 1997, they got married and built a life together in Staten Island. Janis describes Robert as an incredibly supportive husband, who was a platform from which she could leap, knowing that if she stumbled, he would be there for her.

One of Robert’s biggest passions was golf. He played in Staten Island – at the Latouret and Esquire Golf Clubs. He logged outings at picturesque courses in Ireland, Scotland, Spain, and championship courses in Kapalua and Wailea in Hawaii.

Robert was a fan of the Olympics, attending the Summer Games in Montreal, Canada, the Winter Games in Innsbruck, Austria and visiting the Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece. He was also a horseracing enthusiast and delighted in his spectator visits to Belmont and Saratoga racetracks. Robert enjoyed different genres of music. He often reflected on attending a Rolling Stones concert at Madison Square Garden in the 1970s and a Willie Nelson concert in Central Park. In his later years, he would listen to the Stones, Nelson, Captain Beefheart and the Grateful Dead on an Alexa device in his home. He also loved movies and even spent some time on movie sets in New York and the Hellboy 2 set in Budapest.

Robert was his own person. Robert didn’t like to “run with the herd” as he often said. That translated to his distinctive sense of style, so much so that friends called him “The Dashing Mr. Palmer.” Even still, he worked well with people. He was gentle in his judgement, as Janis would say, and was always quick to offer a helping hand to friends and strangers alike. Robert was a compassionate and generous person. He was a fervent supporter of charities that operated to improve the lives of the downtrodden and enhance the human experience.

Robert, who was tremendously loved, is survived by his wife Janis, his siblings: John, Susan, Catherine, Virginia, Thomas, Christopher, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, in-laws and other relatives

In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Robert Dowd Palmer can be made to the Multiple Myeloma Foundation.