Robert Howard Stanley

Robert passed away peacefully after an extended illness at Bettendorf Health Care Center. A service will be held Saturday, February 7th at Weerts Funeral Home in Davenport, IA, beginning at 11:00 AM. Visitation will be held one-hour prior beginning at 10:00 AM. A private burial will follow. In May, a Celebration of Life Service will be held at St. John's United Methodist Church in Davenport.

Robert was born on November 13th, 1941, to Robert Edward Stanley and Mary Ellen Stanley in Paducah, KY. He graduated from Rock Island High School and received his BA in Economics with minors in Math and English from the University of Iowa, and a MA's in Education and English from Western Illinois University. He taught at Andalusia Elementary School and retired in 1994, after which he taught philosophy at Muscatine Community College for some time. He was a member of the Davenport Horticultural Society, and active member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) until the Iowa chapter disbanded the Quad Cities branch.

He married Carolee Puls on June 27, 1965, in St. John's United Methodist Church in Davenport, IA. The people there prayed for him continually for the last ten years of his life. Bob was a birthday present twice. Born on his mother's birthday and married on his wife's.

Robert kept busy managing rental property, writing math proofs, reading, calling talk shows, and noticing printed grammatical errors. (He called himself a grammar nazi). He also loved history, philosophical discussion and was interested in the many other subjects to list. Bob was devoted to his nieces and nephews and enjoyed spending time with them. Always a teacher, with an equal affection for both letters and numbers, he would entertain them with word games, mathematical proofs or trivia: "What is the longest word in the English language?" "Spell it." He was a great conversationalist and enjoyed meeting interesting people, sharing philosophies, entrepreneurial ideas, even grievances. He especially loved talking about politics or current controversies and could expertly play both sides of an argument. There were also tales from the classroom. One memorable example is the game he created called "Stanley Football," designed to use the strengths of all the kids in his class. He was very thrifty and set the trend for duct tape wallets way before the rest of the world caught on. He loved good company, wide-ranging conversation, coffee, chocolate, and his beloved cats. He was one of a kind. We will all treasure the many special memories we have with him and the inspiration he provided all of us with wit, fierce intelligence, and love.

Words from nephew, Calvin; An early memory of Uncle Robert is when Aunt Carolee and he came to visit us in Pittsburgh when my brother and I were kids. He would sit with us at a computer terminal running an early AI program, "ELIZA," and help us think up clever, slightly snarky questions to ask it. We delighted in having him engaging us with humor and curiosity.

Many years later, when Melissa, Joseph, and I came out to visit, he took us to an old school building he owned. As evening fell, we stood together and watched thousands of fireflies rise and flicker in the summer twilight on the property. It was a quiet, beautiful moment that has stayed with me. As I grew older, I came to appreciate Uncle Robert's sharp wit and his love for deep conversation. He enjoyed challenging assumptions and encouraging us to think more carefully and honestly.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Mary Ellen Howard Stanley and Robert Edward Stanley; two sisters, Rosemary Stanley and Sharon L. Stanley Johnson; brothers-in law Joseph Johnson and David P. Miller; and one niece, Marianna Miller.

He is survived by his wife, Carolee Puls Stanley; sister Tommy Stanley Miller; beloved nieces and nephews Ben Miller, Elizabeth Miller Mercier (Bill), Howard Miller, Nanette Miller Zorn (Ben), Nathan Miller (Nancy), Calvin Johnson (Melissa) and Ted Johnson; grand nieces and nephews Sam, Owen, Margaret, Bengi, Lillian, Eliza, Charlie and Joseph; and two sisters-in-law Martha (Marti) Puls and Karen Puls.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to St John's United Methodist Church in Davenport.