Robert (Bob) Schaefer passed away of a heart attack very quickly on the morning of December 21. He had end stage kidney disease and knew that at some point one of his organs would fail but he felt comfortable with his mortality. The blessing was that he suffered no pain from his kidney disease and was able to drive until the day before his death.
The son of Richard and Ruth Schaefer, Bob had a wonderful childhood in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he played with friends and got into his share of scrapes. He played baseball, and golf, guided by his dad, who was his greatest fan. He loved golf his entire life and served as president of his golf club. Although he left Ohio in 1965, he kept in contact with all his childhood friends and family all throughout his life. Their phone conversations were his principal source of joy during his last two years.
Bob earned his MBA at the University of Cincinnati, where he won a scholarship and served as a graduate assistant teaching freshman business classes. After graduation in 1962, he served in the army. At General Electric, he rose from salesman to Marketing Manager for the Chemical and Metallurgical Division. During those 17 years, he moved back and forth from Detroit to Los Angeles four times following various promotions.
After leaving GE, he served as President of Tulon Inc for five years, General Manager and Partner of Megatool, Inc. for 13 years, and then as an independent consultant for the industrial tooling industry.
Bob loved life and his many friends and family, and never spoke disparagingly of any of them. He tried never to be serious when he could make others laugh. His presence filled every room he entered with his energy and his wicked wit.
He is survived by his second wife of 55 years, Sandy, with whom he shared great happiness, many, many homes and travel both across the country and around the world. According to Sandy, Bob may occasionally have been annoying, but always loving, interesting and never boring. In addition, Bob is survived by his first wife, Nancy, and their two sons, Rob and Rick, who have both been very successful in business and are exceptionally fine human beings.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 Friday morning, January 31, at Hilgenfeld Mortuary. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to either Wounded Warriors or Make-a-Wish, where he volunteered for many years.