In Memory

Robert W "Bob" Whitcher - Class Of 1954

Robert W Bob Whitcher

Robert "Bob" Whitcher  '54, a loving husband, dad, grandfather, and friend, passed away in July 2007.  He fondly remembered his South Pas friends from the Marengo days. 

He was happily married to his wife Jean for 45 years.  They spent 27 years living at the beach, and then moved to Menifee (Temecula area) 17 years ago.  Since Bob and Jean lived on the golf course, most of their life revolved around golf and golf vacations with friends.  When not playing golf or traveling, they enjoyed spending time with their three sons and their grandkids.



 
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08/13/12 12:07 PM #1    

Jack L Seal (1954)

Bob was my first friend when my mother and I moved to South Pasadena in June 1944. IWe were both 7 years old at that time. We lived in an apartment house at 1304 Fremont Ave. and Bob and his mom & dad lived right next door.  We were in the third grade at Marengo Grammar School at that time.  The distance from our front door to his bedroom was only about 15 feet.  We were best friends from that time until we moved to a different part of town during my junior year in high school.  During those years we were as close as brothers.  We were crazy about baseball and building model airplanes.  We both got the same kind of baseball gloves and the same kind of bicycles (Monarchs)  We used to call each other "Boog".  We did everything together and were very competitive towards each other.  I was always a pitcher and Bob was always a catcher.  Even in high school I aways wanted him to catch whenever I pitched.  The fact that we were both southerners made us even closer.  He was from Knoxville, Tennessee and I was from Tupelo, Mississippi.  We each developed a special whistle which we would whistle outside each others apartment whenever we wanted to see if we were at home.  We both played the trumpet.  One time we were scheduled to play a trumpet duet at an Easter Sunrise service in the Arroyo Seco.  The site was on a hillside and my mother and I arrived late, so I had to run up the hill with trumpet in hand.  I was so winded that I could not play and Bob had to play a solo.  On another occasion we were playing football in the front yard when I was tackled.  As my head was about to land on a concrete sidewalk, Bob, who was already on the ground reached out to catch my head before it hit the concrete.  We would spend two weeks in June every summer at YMCA Camp Orizaba on Catalina Island.  In order to pass the swimming test we were required to swim out to a float offshore and touch it and swim back to shore.  I was not a good swimmer, but Bob was an excellent swimmer.  When I swam out to the float I was exhausted and tried to hold on to the float and rest before I started back.  One of the camp counselors pushed me off and told me I couldn't stop to rest if I wanted to pass the test.  As I started to swim back towards shore I really didn't think I was going to make it, and then I felt a hand underneath me giving me support.  It was Bob giving me help and I was able to get back to shore and pass the test.  I was in Bob's apartment one day when we were in the 9th grade and he encouraged me to call Diane Young for a date.  It was my first date and Diane and I went steady for two years.  At the last high school reunion I attended, Bob reminded me of the day when we were both in college and played a baseball game against each other.  I think he was at L.A. State and I was at USC.  It was good to see Bob again and meet his wife Jean at our 50th  high school reunion.  I was really sorry to hear of Bob's passing and have wanted to write this testimonial as a tribute to him for a long time, but didn't know what to say.  Bob was the best of friends.

With Great Respect,

Jack L. Seal

 


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