Godspeed, Uncle Bob

Robert Leroy Newey died September 29, 2010. My Dad's brother is the only uncle that I've had any real memory of. He was, to my childhood memory, always the coolest. His home in Ogden was decorated in the original '60's look that is coming back again. I loved spending Christmas or Thanksgiving in their home with cousins and grandparents and my introduction to the joys of stretching out and napping on the floor after a great meal. These visits are also my first memories of watching football on TV, never really caught on to that though.

Our families took occasional vacations together and Dad and Uncle Bob even bought a condo in Park City in the mid-70's as both families enjoyed skiing. I seem to recall Dad saying in amazement at the time that it cost 'almost $40,000!'  I hate to think what that condo would go for now, sitting just off upper-Main Street. But again, this was a time where Dad could put four or five kids on the slopes of Park City for '...fifty whole dollars!'  We would ski with sandwiches in our pockets because '...I’m not paying outrageous prices for lunch too!’

As much as we did together as families, I never really got to know my uncle. There were the big-band records that we found stored on the TV/turntable console that came with the condo. I recall a commemorative plate on his wall at home that had the image of a WWII era bomber in the center. I seem to recall as a child seeing some sort of Air Force-like uniform stored in my grandparents' basement (my only reference to the Air Force at the time was 'I Dream of Jeannie' reruns).

Other than that, the distance widened with Uncle Bob's divorce in the early '80s. We kept fairly close with our cousins as they matured, married and had children of their own. We also kept close to Aunt Cammy after the divorce, more so than with Uncle Bob as he moved on with his new wife and life.

Somehow, in spite of the distance between me and my Uncle, I’ve developed an appreciation of jazz music (maybe not so much big band though). At the funeral Bill Bockas, a good friend of Uncle Bob played a medley of jazz tunes ‘after the style of Erroll Gardner’. I was pleased with myself for at least recognizing the name of this jazz piano great, even if I couldn’t identify his ‘style’ if you asked me. As the medley began I smiled as the first tune was easily recalled as ‘Stardust’. The second tune moistened my eyes as I recognized the classic ‘Someone to Watch Over Me’ (a sentimental favorite). The final tune, 'Misty' choked me up as this standard came through the transition. What a great musical send-off for a friend.

In the early '80s I was surprised to learn that Uncle Bob was on the Utah State Board of Regents. As a student at the University of Utah I attended the installment of Chase Peterson as President of the 'U'. As the processional of dignitaries filed-into the Special Events Center, there with the other Regents was my Uncle Bob! Of course I had no idea until then there was such a thing as a ‘Board of Regents’, much less what they did. However it was pretty cool to know that my uncle was on the board with some very well-known community leaders.

Uncle Bob is best known as the Weber County Attorney that personally prosecuted the case against the Hi-Fi Killers -- a horrible robbery turned torture, rape and murder case that still sends chills down the spines of those old enough to remember. Bob later became a juvenile court judge in Ogden's 2nd District Court.

I learned quite a lot about my uncle at his funeral. He played drums through his life and was quite a dancer in his day. He flew the Martin B-26 in WWII in the 9th Air Force (known variously as the 'widow maker' and 'flying prostitute'). I do remember Dad telling me a bit about Uncle Bob’s service when the movie ‘Battle of the Bulge’ was on TV. As I recall, there is a point where General Patton’s battle plan calls for aerial bombing at a specific time, however the bombers are grounded by fog which really throws-off Patton's plans. That, apparently, was a mission my Uncle Bob was supposed to fly. I know nothing of his other missions, other than what I've seen since his death on Wikipedia.

Uncle Bob continued his military service in the Air Force Reserves, finally retiring as a Lt. Colonel even while serving in his various civilian community service roles. He was buried with military honors.

Godspeed, Uncle Bob on your new adventures, on your freedom from the pain and illness that takes you from family and friends at the end of a life of community service.