Robert Lloyd Glover

Rob was born in McAlester, OK, on October 19,1954, to Lloyd Wilford Glover and Dorothy Lilian Glover (nee Blandamer). While his father was born and raised in Southeastern Oklahoma, Rob’s mother was from Dorchester, Dorset in England; she immigrated to the US after WWII.

In 1956, the family moved to Wichita Falls, TX, when Rob’s parents accepted positions at Sheppard AFB. Rob was active in DeMolay in Wichita Falls and was a Past Master Councilor and a Chevalier at Hope Chapter. He attended SH Rider High School, graduating from Rider in 1972. After graduation, Rob attended the University of Texas at Austin (UT) where he was accepted into the Honors Program. Based on the advice of one of his high school teachers, his goal was to major in chemistry and attend medical school after graduating from UT.

One of the things that attracted Rob to UT was the opportunity to live off campus as a freshman. He roomed with a good friend from Wichita Falls and two others, all of whom were senior engineers. Rob noticed that engineering students graduating in 1973 were getting job offers while other graduates appeared to be struggling to find employment. Just in case, he decided not to go to medical school; instead, Rob decided he should explore engineering to see if there were any engineering degrees that would give him the chemistry he needed for medical school. He found chemical engineering and signed up for an “Introduction to Chemical Engineering” class. It was a life-changing decision. Rob fell in love with the problem-solving aspect of engineering, as well as the comradery and the emphasis on teamwork. It wasn’t long before engineering became the plan, and medical school became the backup.

Rob graduated UT with honors with his bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 1976 and a master's degree in chemical engineering in 1978. He was a member of the Chemical Engineering Honor Society, Omega Chi Epsilon, the VP of Tau Beta Pi (the engineering equivalent of Phi Beta Kappa), and served on the UT Student Engineering Council.

Rob started work at Radian Corporation in Austin, TX, in February 1978 while completing his master’s thesis at UT. It was at Radian that Rob met Vicki Wood, who was to become his wife. Vicki wanted to meet Rob, so she talked one of Rob’s good friends at Radian into forming a coed softball team that they would co-manage, knowing that Rob would play on the team if his friend was one of the managers. It worked. Vicki and Rob started dating while playing softball, and Vicki became Rob’s wife and life-long companion in August of 1980.

Rob obtained his TX Professional Engineer license while at Radian and worked on a number of environmental control projects, including a spray dryer pilot plant at a test facility owned by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) in Denver, CO. While in Denver, Rob learned that EPRI was building a larger test facility outside of Buffalo, NY, and that they were looking for a manager to run the new center. He applied and in June 1985 was hired as the High Sulfur Test Center (HSTC) Facility Manager.

Rob oversaw the start-up, operation and maintenance of the facility until 1991. During Rob’s tenure, the HSTC was recognized by the National Society of Professional Engineers and the American Academy of Environmental Engineers as an Outstanding Engineering Achievement. Rob was also awarded 4 patents.

In 1991, Rob and his family moved to Southlake, TX, to be closer to family. Rob worked in EPRI’s newly opened Dallas office managing environmental control projects and performing technology transfer activities with EPRI members. He also started up an Environmental Assistance Center (EAC) to help EPRI members identify and apply EPRI environmental-related R&D results. Rob’s responsibilities continued to evolve in Dallas, including expanding the original EAC to an EPRI-wide Customer Assistance Center with offices in Dallas and Columbus, OH. In 2002, Rob was also appointed to the Texas Council on Environmental Technology by Governor Perry, serving from 2002 to 2005.

With the move to Southlake, Rob began volunteering in the Carroll school district. Initially, he coached an Odyssey of the Mind team and then, in 1993, served as the director of the Odyssey of the Mind program for the district and as a community member on Carroll’s Academic and Cocurricular Enhancement (ACE) Committee. In 1994, Rob was elected to the Carroll Board of Trustees and was asked to chair the ACE Committee. Rob was particularly proud of the ACE committee’s work which included recommendations to improve the district’s dyslexia program and many other topics which supported the Carroll District Improvement Plan. Rob served on the Board from 1994 to 2003, and then again from 2005 to 2007, and was a past president of the Carroll school board.

In addition to his work on the school board, Rob also teamed with an English cousin to help develop a music exchange program between Carroll High School and the Tring School in Tring, England. Approximately 25 students from the Carroll band and from the Tring music program spent a week at each other’s school, attending class and presenting joint concerts. The Tring Exchange continued over a number of years, fostering learning and friendship between the two schools and the two communities.

Rob was named a Director at EPRI in 2006 and at the conclusion of his board commitment, moved to Charlotte, NC in 2007. Rob and Vicki remained in Charlotte until 2013 when they moved back to Southlake where Rob served as the Director in the Dallas office until his retirement in 2022. Rob had a long and fulfilling career that ranged from managing technical projects as a member of the technical staff to overseeing a wide variety of areas on the business side as a Director. Rob also served as a mentor to a number of EPRI technical and business staff over the years, which he greatly enjoyed.

Rob’s favorite job, though, was that of dad and husband. He was immensely proud of his daughters, even though they chose to attend Texas Tech University instead of the University of Texas. He felt blessed to have his best friend Vicki by his side, supporting and encouraging him and their family throughout their marriage. The addition of four grandchildren and two sons-in-law in recent years brought even more joy, as he added grandfather (Papa) to his job responsibilities.

Rob is survived by his wife of 44 years, Vicki Glover; his daughter Emma Hill (Wally Hill) of Conroe, TX; his daughter Cat Zagar (Matthew Zagar) of Argyle, TX; his four grandchildren, Raelyn Hill, Wyatt Hill, Jane Zagar, and Dylan Zagar; his sister-in-law Linda Harris of Buda, TX; his brother-in-law Bob Wood (Shirley Wood) of Santa Fe, NM; his niece Lisa Harris (Amy Roshner) and nephew Steven Harris (Martha Harris) both of Buda, TX; numerous cousins both in the US and in England; and many friends and colleagues who made his personal and professional journeys so special. He was preceded in death by his parents, Lloyd and Dorothy, and his brother-in-law, Fraser Harris.

Funeral services will be at the St Laurence Anglican Church in Southlake, Texas on April 26 at 3:00pm. There will be a reception in the parish hall following the service, where friends and family can celebrate Rob’s life and share remembrances.

Rob asked that people consider making a donation to the Shriners Children’s Hospital, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the charity of their choice in lieu of flowers. Special thanks to Dr Ravi Patel and the staff at Texas Oncology in Grapevine, TX.