- Date Of Birth: January 4, 1942
- Date Of Death: February 27, 2021
- State: Arizona
Robert Fleming Bobbitt, 79, of Flagstaff AZ died February 27, 2021 after a short but intense battle with cancer and a long struggle with Alzheimer’s. Bob was born in 1942 to the late, Thomas F and Iola Bobbitt, in Washington D.C. He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Paris Bobbitt, his children, Beck (Marty) Marchbanks, Beth (Kurt) Geisel and Robert Bobbitt, eight grandchildren, Alex, Bill, Sam, Maddie, Abby, Brianna, Kolya and Lindsey. His siblings, Sylvia (Frank) Ardinger, Michael Bobbitt, and Kenneth Bobbitt, along with several nephews and nieces.
Bob grew up in Northern Virginia and attended McLean High School. As a young man, he held a variety of jobs including working as a bike mechanic and delivering a newspaper route. In his time off, Bob and his brother Kenny spent time hunting the woods of VA. This passion never left him, and he became an avid outdoorsman and hunter.
Bob met Paris on a blind date. They married on September 7, 1963 and moved into a mobile home on the campus of University of Virginia where Bob was attending Engineering School. From these humble beginnings, Bob developed grand ideas/dreams and a life-long plan to implement them. Mom said that her life began when she met this lighthearted, independent, gregarious, kind, energetic, hardworking, outdoorsman. Weekends were spent hiking, camping, canoeing, caving, doing laundry at the laundromat, rock hounding, have friends over and picking berries and making jams. You may wonder how anyone could do all of that while maintaining excellent grades in a challenging technical program.
Bob graduated with honors from UVA Engineering school in 1966. That same year Bob and Paris began a family, and Bob started a career with Olin Chemical Company. Becky was born, Beth, 18 months later and Bob, another 17 months after that. Bob had an epiphany shortly after Bob Jr. came along. He decided to go back to school to become a dentist.
He attended University of Maryland Dental School and graduated in 1974. One particular summer, Bob accepted a position traveling across America in a motor home, selling dental instruments to help pay his way through dental school. Along the way, he and Paris fell in love with the west, and in particular, Flagstaff, AZ.
After graduating from University of Maryland, and before settling in Flagstaff, Bob worked as a dentist for the HIS. This took him to Ft Defiance, AZ and Wolf Point, MT where he found an affinity for the Native American culture. In Montana, Bob’s love of hunting and the outdoors was renewed, and he spent many hours bird hunting. The family ate more pheasant in that one year than in a lifetime since!
Bob and Paris moved to Flagstaff after purchasing a dental practice in 1976. Bob truly loved and cared for his patients. The first building he practiced in, is located where Flagstaff Medical Center west campus now resides. In 1982, he called upon his father and builder “TF” to come to Flagstaff to help construct a new building to expand his practice. Bob and his father worked tirelessly; Bob worked all day at the dental office and then joined his father in the evenings to complete the building for his growing practice. It is still used as a dental office today.
Over the years Bob expanded his dental practice to Tuba City, AZ and continued as the only private practice dentist on the Navajo Nation for many years. His love of the people and the culture never faded.
In his years in Flagstaff, Bob was very involved in the community. He worked as a Scout Master for Bob’s Boy Scout Troop. He was a charter member of the Kiwana’s club as well as being an active member of the Elks.
He also HUNTED. He got hooked on big game hunting. He hunted and hunted. He was almost able to complete the Norther American Super Slam narrowly missing it by a Coues Deer. His good friends Alan Edgar and John McLoughlin, along with other friends and family members, spent many hours, weeks and weekends in the outdoors, hunting, scouting, and enjoying nature. Bob’s love of nature and his knowledge of the outdoors was most evident in his generous philanthropy/support of numerous wildlife conservation causes and organizations.
Another of Bob’s passions was traveling. He loved to explore new places and the history of far-off locations. He and Paris traveled to ever state within the US. They also traveled the world, many times over with family and friends. Their wanderlust led them to travel to every continent.
Anyone who knew Bob, knew better than to challenge him in a game of Trivia. He ha an immense knowledge of everything from construction to the stars, all of which he was more than happy to share with those lucky enough to know him. Many nights were spent at Lake Powell looking up at the stars and being educated about Orion (the hunter) and other constellations.
When his grandchildren came along, he shared the wealth of his experiences; his passion for hunting, his love and caring for the outdoors, and his strong work ethic. Nothing was too little to share. Bob and Paris considered their family to be their greatest achievement. The family for them, was a life-long dream fulfilled. Bob was well loved and will always remain in their hearts.
Bob was a true Renaissance man. He knew so much and willingly shared all that he could. His lifetime of exploring the world around him never faded, even in the years when Alzheimer’s diminished his memory, he would remind us daily that, “It sure is a beautiful day!”
