Robert Ross Black

Rob was a deeply positive influence in the lives of countless young people in El Dorado and the surrounding communities. He served for many years as Scoutmaster of Troop 17 with the Boy Scouts of America, helping over 30 young men achieve the rank of Eagle Scout. He also coached baseball and remained involved for years after his coaching tenure as a trusted mentor and advisor to local coaches and players.

Mentoring young people was one of the constants of Rob’s life, and much of it happened outside any formal role. At HealthWorks, formerly the YMCA, Rob taught many young people how to lift weights, train properly, and, perhaps most importantly, push themselves further than they thought possible.

But Rob’s teaching extended far beyond the gym. Over the years, he taught people how to water ski, wake surf, tie knots, back a boat trailer, read a topographical map, manage money, invest, cook, play volleyball, appreciate the outdoors, and approach life with confidence and independence. He had an instinct for seeing potential in people and took genuine pleasure in helping them develop it.

Rob had a lifelong love of adventure, travel, and especially the water. He spent much of his summers on his boat at Lake Ouachita, a place that held special meaning for him and for many of the people fortunate enough to spend time there with him. An avid water skier, Rob taught generations of friends and young people to ski behind his boat, sharing not only his love of the sport but the entire lake experience that meant so much to him.

Rob also loved to surf, and Hawaii held a particularly special place in his heart. He loved traveling to the islands whenever he had the opportunity, as he was drawn to the ocean, the surf, and the lifestyle.

His home became a gathering place for generations of local youth. During the warmer months, impromptu sand volleyball games could break out at just about any time and continue late into the evening. For many, Rob’s backyard was more than a place to play volleyball. It was a safe place to gather, compete, laugh, make friends, and simply belong. Rob was generous with his home and his time, but he also expected responsibility—clean up after yourself, turn off the lights, respect the neighbors, and help the less experienced player learn the game.

He encouraged young people to take care of themselves, pursue higher education, travel, manage their money wisely, and seek opportunities beyond their perceived reach. He took tremendous pride in keeping up with those he had mentored and watching them grow, succeed, and build lives of their own. For some, he was a coach or mentor. For others, he became something very close to a father figure.

Professionally, Rob was a forestry consultant and the owner of Timberland Resources, Inc., a forestry management and consulting company he founded in 1985. For more than four decades, Rob built his career working with landowners and managing timberland throughout Arkansas. He loved forestry and freely shared his knowledge with anyone interested enough to ask.

Rob never met a stranger. He would strike up a conversation with just about anyone, and anyone who knew him knew that he was never short on opinions, advice, or a story—often beginning with some version of “back in the day.” Whether the subject was forestry, fitness, investing, baseball, skiing, politics, travel, or life in general, Rob usually had something to say about it, and he was rarely in a hurry to stop talking.

That openness, candor, curiosity, and genuine interest in people made Rob who he was. He remembered people. He asked how they were doing. He followed their lives. He challenged them when they needed challenging and encouraged them when they needed encouragement.

Rob was preceded in death by his parents, Barbara McDaniel Black and Robert R. Black Jr. He is survived by his brother, William Brian Black (Melissa); stepbrothers, John Michael Miles (Jeannie) and Mark Butler Miles (Kimberly); nieces and nephews; and the countless friends, former Scouts, athletes, young people, colleagues, and others whose lives he touched over the years.

Rob never had children of his own, but the responses of those who knew him make something very clear: he invested a tremendous part of his life in helping raise, teach, encourage, and guide other people’s children. His legacy will live on in the generations of people who learned from him, laughed with him, traveled with him, played ball or volleyball with him, rode in his boat, sat with him in the gym, or simply spent enough time around him to hear one more story.

Visitation will be held on Saturday, October 17, from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. at Immanuel Baptist Church, with the funeral service immediately following.

In lieu of flowers, those wishing to honor his memory may donate to the Robert R. Black, III Youth Fund through the Union County Community Foundation, Inc., P O Box 148, El Dorado, AR 71731 or at www.uccfar.org

Condolences can be expressed online at www.youngsfuneralhome.com