Robert Joseph Miner

Robert will be deeply missed loving family and friends. Children; Lynn (Ron) McConnell, Laurie (Jeff) Kay, Jeff (Karen) Miner, Lisa (Bob) Treise and Susan (Bryon) Deiss. 13 grandchildren, 31 great-grandchildren.

Preceded in death by his beloved wife of 73 years; Geraldine “Gerrie”, parents; Clifford and Eva, brother; Clifford Jr. “Kippy.”

Robert was a long-time member of First Lutheran Church in St. Paul. He loved the cabin, hunting, fishing, golfing, bowling, woodworking, and family get togethers. Robert also enjoyed critiquing the Minnesota Twins and the Vikings. Above all else, he was devoted to his beloved family.

Visitation will begin at 10am on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at Wulff Funeral Home, 2195 Woodlane Dr. Woodbury, MN 55125. Followed by a service at 11am. Interment at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, 1800 Edgerton St. St. Paul, MN 55117. In lieu of flowers, memorials preferred to Breakthrough T1D, formerly Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund (JDRF).

"My Life, My Story" - A life story written by Bob Miner

St. Paul is my winter home and Cedar Lake near Annandale, MN is my summer home. 3M was my work home. I never felt at home when I traveled the world for 3M because home is where your heart is. My heart is always with my wife Geri because she was all I really had until we made our own family together

My life began on Grand Avenue in St. Paul in 1929. My father Clifford and mother Eva already had my older brother Clifford Jr. In 1940, when I was still in elementary school, we moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin for three years. The war was in full swing, and food was rationed. It was a tough time for everyone, but especially us. My brother Clifford had diabetes and got an infection that killed him at the age of 14 on my birthday.

My father's brother owned a supermarket in South St. Paul, and he offered the store to my father who brought us back home to St. Paul to take over the Miner's Brothers business. I attended Creighton High School and helped at the supermarket. On the 4th of July 1945, The Miner Brothers supermarket was closed, but there was always work to do. I was helping my father render lard in the basement of the supermarket that day and asked if I could have the afternoon off to go swimming with my friends at Lake Phalen. He said I could leave if I sent my mother down to the store to keep him company. My mother went to the store and that afternoon both my parents were asphyxiated because of the insufficient ventilation. I became a 16-year-old orphan who was taken in by Aunt Marjorie and my uncle William who had sold the supermarket to my father. They repurchased the store and ran it for a couple years.

While I was in high school, I became reacquainted with an elementary school classmate of mine named Geraldine. It was by chance that we met when my friends and I threw popcorn at her and her friends in a movie theater. I asked her out that night, but Geri turned me down. I persevered and eventually we started dating.

After I graduated from high school in 1947. I enrolled at St. Thomas College. At the time I was dating my grade school classmate, Geraldine. My aunt and uncle decided to move to California, but I was not interested in going with them. So, at the age of 18, I was completely on my own, except for Geri who was also 18.

I was raised Catholic and Geri was a member of the Lutheran Church. My parents were Catholic and Lutheran as well. I decided my family should have one faith tradition, so despite the family priest's protests, Geri and I were married in 1948 in the Lutheran church. Perhaps beyond my years in thinking, I told the priest that it was my recollection in the Bible it says, "Whenever two or more are gathered in my name, I will be there." I figured that included the LUtheran church. Geri and I raised our children at the Lutheran church as well.

To support my family, I left St. Thomas and took a job at 3M in the mail room. Within a year our daughter Lynn was born and then over the next several years, Lori Jean, Jeff, LIsa, and finally Susan. Luckily in the early 50's, there was plenty of work and plenty of promotions to be had at 3M. I worked my way from the mail room to the order department, then to the industrial abrasives department and finally into marketing. The job in marketing took me all over the world to countries including Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, and Japan. The problem was that my home was St. Paul, and I didn't like flying. When I found out air travel was not a requirement for my position, I stayed in St. Paul. However, Geri and I continued to entertain all kinds of international guests, which we enjoyed.

The years of raising our children flew by and we enjoyed spending time on Cedar Lake with family. So, in 1968, we bought our own lake home and spent as much time there as possible.

I fished every day in an old fishing boat. The kids enjoyed the water sports. In many ways, the cabin became our home. As the kids grew up and went on to college and had their own families, Geri and I vacationed more. I put in 40 years at 3M and retired in 1989.

We spent several weeks in the winter in Florida, and met up with St. Paul friends in Texas, and Arizona. I golfed at the 3M golf course in St. Paul and enjoyed duck hunting in the fall. Both Geri and I were cribbage players and bowlers. I think at my best, I bowled 279. We also went to the casino for entertainment and took part in a few sporting events.

Even though I was not fond of flying, a friend convinced me to fly with him to Canada where he had a fishing shack and access to the best walleye fishing there is. I was hooked and returned a couple times a year for many years with friends and family. I also took up woodworking and made grandfather clocks and wall clocks - some I sold and some I gave to my children and grandchildren as gifts. I also made many pieces of furniture.

Our home in St. Paul became too big for us to manage, so we sold it in 2021 and moved into a condominium in North St. Paul. We still have our lake home. We have 12 grandchildren and 30 great grandchildren. One morning at our cabin Geri woke up and said she wasn't feeling well. I told her to rest. When I went back to check on her, she was gone (tearing up) We had a wonderful life together. The key is loving one another. I could dream about what I’d like to do next, but I can't fish anymore and most of my friends who I would want to fish with are gone. My children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are the most important thing I have left.