Robert L. Jursnick

Bob was the proud grandson of Irish and Slovenian immigrants who settled in Montana. He was the third son born to Frank and Anna Mae (Rodgers) Jursnick in Butte on June 27, 1945. Bob grew up hunting and fishing with his dad and brothers in the mountains of southwest Montana. He graduated from Butte High School and obtained a bachelors’ degree in History from Montana State University in Bozeman. He also graduated from the Executive Leadership Program at the University of Minnesota.

His career included extensive travels and began with the American Red Cross. He received training at Travis Air Force Base in California before being sent to South Vietnam as an Assistant Field Director for several military bases in Thailand and South Vietnam for 18 months during the Vietnam War. His next assignment took him to Stuttgart, Germany, at U.S. European Command Headquarters. In 1973, Bob accepted a position in Denver as a Field Representative serving all Red Cross Chapters in southern Colorado. He progressed to become the Executive Director of the Montana Red Cross Chapter in Great Falls, Assistant to the Executive Vice President at American Red Cross National Headquarters in Washington, D.C., followed by Executive Director positions at the Seattle-King County Red Cross Chapter, and then the St. Paul Minnesota Red Cross Chapter & Blood Bank Service. He also served on numerous disaster assignments, including Operation Babylift, which brought Vietnamese babies to the U.S. following the end of the Vietnam War, Hurricane Iniki in Hawaii, and the Big Thompson Flood in Colorado.

In 1995, he became the Executive Director of USA Shooting at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and attended the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta with his team. He then served 10 years as the Executive Director of the National Strength & Conditioning Association, where he expanded the organizations presence within the United States, Italy, Japan and China. He also oversaw the expansion of the NSCA’s headquarters to a new location in Colorado Springs before retiring in 2010.

Bob loved being outdoors and skiing, hiking, and biking with his family and friends. Embracing his adventurous spirit, in 2014, he and four friends embarked on a 500 mile pilgrimage walk called the Camino de Santiago, from St. Jean, France, over the Pyrenees Mountains, and across Spain.

He met the love of his life and fellow Red Cross Field Director, Valerie May, in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1973 and they were married in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, in 1974. They were blessed with two wonderful sons, Christian and Sean. Bob met life’s challenges with courage and determination and will forever be known for his love of family, strength, courage, honesty, and humor.

Bob is survived by his devoted wife Valerie, loving sons Christian and Sean, Sean’s wife Jennifer, and the delight of his life, grandson Leo. Jursnick family members who mourn his loss are: nieces Julia Elizondo (Victor), Jill Cleary (Tom), and Sherry Robinson (Gary); nephew Dan Jursnick, sister-in-law Gayle Nichols, great-nieces Ashleigh, Nicole, and Rebecca; and great-nephews Josh, Brandon, Sean, and Patrick. He is also survived by May family members: sisters-in-law Cynthia Boudwin (Steve), Jennifer Stuth, and Hilary Stauber (John), along with brothers-in-law Jeff May (Tracy) and Tim May (Debbie), and numerous nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Anna Mae, brothers Jim and Dan, nephew Mark Jursnick, and Valerie’s parents, Leon and Elsie May.

The Jursnick family extends its heartfelt appreciation to Rocky Mountain Cancer Center, Compassus Palliative & Hospice Care, Gentle Shepherd Home Care, St. Francis of Assisi Parish family members, and countless friends and neighbors for their love, support, and caring during Bob’s journey.

A funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, November 2, at 4:00 pm at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, 2650 Parish View, Colorado Springs, CO 80919. A dinner and celebration of Bob’s life will follow in the Parish Hall.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be given to St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Catholic Charities of Colorado Springs 14 West Bijou St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903, or Esophageal Cancer Action Network, Inc. (ecan.org), PO Box 243, Stevenson, MD 21153.