Born to Milton and Stella Kolton on October 20, 1939, Bob grew up in Detroit, Michigan where he developed his love of all things mechanical. Besides working on cars and motorcycles, in his younger years he enjoyed ski trips to Colorado and gambling junkets to Vegas with the Detroit Zoo Crew, along with boating on the Detroit River in his 32’ Chris Craft “Moonshot”, which he sold in 1972, the day before he married his wife, Joan.
Together, Bob and Joan had 2 children, and in 1981 left Michigan for the beauty and warmth of Sarasota, Florida. Here Bob established himself as a top producing Commercial Real Estate broker specializing in Industrial Real Estate. After working for a few companies, and owning his own brokerage, he settled at Michael Saunders & Company, from which he retired in 2015 after 25 years of service.
Even in his later years, Bob always kept active, participating in both the Manatee and Sarasota PC Users Groups, various car clubs, and helped found Dimage, an organization focused on digital photography and imaging. You’d often find Bob at a car or motorcycle show, taking photos, which he later photoshopped and gifted to owners at the next event. He was tremendously generous, quick witted, and had an infectious smile.
Bob is survived by his wife Joan; son Matthew (Maureen); daughter Roberta (Gabriel); 3 granddaughters, Shelby, Sloane and Brinkley; and his sisters, Virginia Bashaw and Leona Socha.
Bob’s family has planned a small service and celebration of his life for Saturday, May 22nd from 4pm to 6pm at Robert Toale and Sons Funeral Home at Manasota Memorial Park, located at 1221 53rd Ave East, Bradenton, FL 34203.
In lieu of flowers, we ask that you make a donation in Bob’s name to Wheel Through Time (62 Vintage Lane, Maggie Valley, North Carolina 28751) a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving American motorcycle and automotive history.
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