"Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;"

Robert C Roth passed away Saturday August 7th at 2:00 at the Cedar Creek Adult Family Home in Marysville, WA where he had resided for several years. Formerly a resident of Camano Island for 40 years.

Bob was born in 1932 in Danby. Mo, and spent his youth on the farm owned by his mom and dad. He and his sister Rosemary, who arrived in 1940, had a rural upbringing with lots of animals and chores.  This did not prevent him from pursuing musical activities through church and excelling in school, a one room affair that housed 35 students, grades first through eighth.  He vividly remembered the one-holer bathrooms and the eventual drilling of a well for the school.

Throughout World War II, he and his family participated in war recycling efforts and raising money for the war effort.  It was a relief when the war ended in 1945 and all of the family came home including his beloved Uncles Paul, Arthur and Archie.

When it came time to enter high school, the big news was that the school would run a bus out to Danby to transport kids to the Festus High School.  Bob excelled at school; something his father, Clarence, was very proud of since he couldn't remember if he finished third or fourth grade.  There were 89 students in Bob's graduating class most of whom remained in the area at various manufacturing plants.  This was not what Bob had in mind.  With the help of a recruiter, the principal and his mother, Bob was accepted at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

One of the requirements for the school turned into a pivotal moment for Bob.  All male students were required to participate in Reserve Officers Training (ROTC) and as a result of his choosing the Air Force, his destiny was set. Moving away to school was eye opening, especially in political views.  He got to see President Eisenhower and hear Harry Truman speak; a Republican education for a Democrat- raised farm boy.

As an Animal Husbandry student, Bob found himself as a livestock judge for various fairs in the area.  It was at one of these, a horse show, that he met his future bride, Rosalena LaRose in 1953.  He was bedecked in a blue cowboy and red boots; she was a "city" girl from Crystal City.

With the end of college,1954, Bob held a BS in Animal Husbandry and set off for aviation school to fulfill his Air Force commitment.  This took him off to the wilds of western America, an area he fell in love with and for the rest of his life he strove to remain west of the Mississippi.

He returned to Missouri in December of that year to marry Rosie and the two set off on the first of many adventures in a 1950 Buick dragging a 26 foot self-contained trailer to Laredo, TX; quite the luxurious unit, even having  a toilet on board. Several groups of relatives visited them in the trailer park in Laredo and many family stories and sayings resulted.

Stations in Florida and Wisconsin followed with more training for Bob.  Throughout this time the realities and dangers of flying really hit home as fellow trainees were killed in flying accidents. Their first daughter, Robin, was born while they were in Madison, so between changes in family and the difficulty of living in a trailer in the north led to a move to a rental house.

During a training mission in 1956 Bob was forced to eject due to weather, pulling his ripcord for the first time.  Shortly after the accident he received his Air Force commission, a start to a long Air Force career. Throughout their Air Force career, Bob and Rosie were stationed at bases in Newfoundland, Texas, Indiana, California (several different bases), Germany and Idaho.Eventually, daughter Melissa, was added to the family  Bob didn't want a "Newfie" baby so Melissa's arrival was delayed by several years until they moved to Texas and purchased their first home.

The most pivotal move in Bob's career was the change to the Physiological Training Unit at Edwards Air Force Base.  Through a series of friendships and connections, Bob made the move from flying to readying pilots and astronauts.  He would often name drop some the most famous of these and always had an opinion of the character of the bigwigs.

While Bob served a tour in Vietnam, Korea and Thailand, his family stayed in Fresno to be near relatives.  He made his second ejection while flying in Vietnam.  He landed in the only tree for yards and was cut down by a "friendly" Vietnamese farmer, the only indicator of friendly being a thumbs up signal!

Upon his return for good, he returned to Edwards as Deputy Base Commander. The job interested him and changed the course of his career .  After six years at Edwards, new adventures awaited and he received orders for Bitburg AFB, Germany.  Traveling throughout Europe really fed into Bob's wanderlust, even if the weather was not always to his liking.

When this tour was over, it was back to western America with a posting to Mountain Home, Idaho.  It was a return to his boyhood with hunting and fishing abounding.  He also completed his Masters in Public Administration through Boise State University.  This was to be his last Air Force assignment and he retired in 1979.

Retirement was not truly that for Bob, he and Rosie bought a home on Camano Island, undertaking a huge remodel by lifting the house up in the air and building a first floor below it.  Bob also started a new career with FEMA, which then led to a third career as a professor and Dean of Distance Learning for City University.

City University allowed Bob to continue traveling the world as he served students in Austria, Denmark, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, and Switzerland.  When he retired again, he became active in the National Sojourners and Masonic Hall in Stanwood. Sadly, Rosie passed away in January 2012, leaving Bob to continue his journey alone.

Bob is survived by his daughters: Robin and Rod Heppner, Melissa and Steve Pascoe and their families.  Back in Missouri he is survived by his sister Rosemary Howard, her son Brad, and several cousins, including Bill Pilliard and his family.

Bob led a full life pursuing his dreams of travel, sharing his many interests with his wife Rosie and raising a happy family. He will be missed.

"And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod the high untrespassed sanctity of space, put out my hand, and touched the face of God."