Robert Manor Rothwell Jr.

Robert M. Rothwell, “Bob”, passed away peacefully on the evening of August 6th, 2023, with his wife of 52 years, Mary Ann, by his side after suffering a sudden cardiac arrest several days earlier. Family, friends, and his beloved grandchildren Madelyn and Bennett were with him continually during his hospitalization.

Bob is survived by his loving wife Mary Ann, children Sharon English (Tim) and Michael Rothwell, grandchildren Madelyn and Bennett English, sister Julianna Sullivan, nieces and nephews, and numerous cousins.

Bob was born August 9, 1946 in Southern California. He grew up near the coast where he learned to surf and made lifelong friends. In the late ‘60’s, Bob enlisted in the United States Navy where he became a nuclear reactor operator on the USS Nathan Hale submarine during the Vietnam war. It was during this time that he met his future wife Mary Ann. Bob and Mary Ann married and lived in Hawaii while his boat was stationed at Pearl Harbor. After being honorably discharged, Bob and Mary Ann camped their way around much of the western United States. Bob enjoyed photography and pictures of their scenic adventures decorated the home where they raised their two children Michael and Sharon in Washington state. Michael and Sharon remember their father as the embodiment of unconditional love who would help them with anything without the slightest hesitation.

Bob earned his Master’s degree in nursing from the University of Washington. His career and personal life were dedicated to helping others. Bob worked at several hospitals but his longest tenure was at the VA Hospital where he worked as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in the Intensive Care Unit and where he cared for his fellow veterans in the ICU. He was known by his co-workers as an excellent teacher with a deep knowledge of nursing. When Bob wasn’t caring for patients at work, he was the go-to person his neighbors came to for everything from cuts and scrapes to post-surgical care. Bob even used CPR to successfully revive a jogger who was found in the neighborhood collapsed on the sidewalk with no pulse.

In retirement, Bob pursued his car racing hobby. Consistent with his passion for teaching others, Bob’s favorite part of his hobby was volunteering as a driving instructor for the various local sports car clubs. Bob always looked forward to teaching his driving students. He also treasured time spent talking cars and hanging out in the garage with his son, Michael and son-in-law Tim, or fixing things with his grandson Bennett. His greatest passion in retirement was spending time with his family and grandparenting with Mary Ann. They even moved fifty miles to live in the same neighborhood as Sharon and her husband, Tim, so they could be near their precious grandkids Madelyn and Bennett.

Bob was utterly dedicated to his family. Just as Bob would not miss a single one of the family’s regular sit-down dinners while raising his children, in his later years he wouldn’t miss a dinner with his children and grandchildren either. Everyone delighted in his Taco Tuesdays. Bob believed in this way of family bonding and he took as much pleasure in the average dinner as he would a family vacation, which he also did frequently with his wife and family. He also more recently found immense joy in family trips out in the Puget Sound on his son Michael’s electric raft watching seals and other wildlife, and snuggling with his grandkids. Bob’s granddaughter Madelyn maintains a fantastic library of so many great vacation photos and happy memories with her grandpa, “Bobby.”

Bob was a joyous person who was hard to find in anything other than a good mood. Bob would always talk about how lucky he was and he valued the simple things in life most of all: family, love, honesty, humor, and helping others. And Bob lived these values by example every day of his amazing life.

The family would like to thank all of Bob’s friends and family for their support as well as Bob’s former co-workers for their truly heart-warming messages.

In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes donations in his name. Please see links below for donations and contributions to be made.

A funeral mass will be held at St. Leo Church, 710 S 13th St, Tacoma, WA, (https://stleoparish.org/) on Thursday, August 31, at 12:10 pm, with reception and celebration of life to follow.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.millsandmillsfunerals.com for the Rothwell family.