1925
Robert
2018
Robert L. Kroeplin
August 16, 1925 — May 14, 2018
Robert L. Kroeplin (Bob), passed quietly from this world on May 14, 2018, in Salem, Oregon. Bob was born in Salem on August 16, 1925, to William and Sophia Kroeplin, and other than his time in military service lived his entire life in the Willamette Valley. He attended Salem Schools and was a life-long member of St. John Lutheran Church.
Bob was the middle child of William and Sophia and was encircled throughout his childhood by older siblings, Norma Kroeplin Kliever and William Kroeplin (deceased), and younger siblings Gloria Kroeplin Bell (Luke) and James Kroeplin. He left Salem High School to serve his country during WWII at the age of 17, and saw military action as a United States Marine in Asia.
At the war’s end, Bob married Lauritta (Rita) O’Brien and they eventually settled on their beloved Salem Farm. Bob once again enlisted in the Military, this time with the United States Navy Construction Battalions (Seabees). For the next 20 years he served with the Seabees in the building of schools, roads, and other infrastructure projects, expanding and honing his construction skills that became part of the rest of his life.
Retiring from the Navy in 1983, Bob started his own business, Kroeplin Installations, a wood floor and counter-top installation business. He later added a sawmilling-to-order to his business enterprise. Many Salem homes and businesses are fortunate beneficiaries of Bob’s artistic eye and precision construction. Family members and friends were often gifted by Bob’s uniquely-crafted boxes and other keepsakes, and examples of his fine woodworking can be seen in St. John Church.
When not working, Bob could most often be found tinkering on an old tractor or any other equipment and indulging in his long-held passion of collecting old cars. It is said he had so many trucks and cars he had to start hiding them around Salem so Rita wouldn’t know of his many acquisitions. Bob and Rita spent the rest if their lives together on their farm, working, hosting family picnics, and gatherings and sharing life until her death on October 17th, 2009.
Bob is survived by his daughter: Suzanne Carlins (Duane), Melodye DiMare, his sisters Norma Kliever and Gloria Bell (Luke), and his brother James Kroeplin. He has four grandchildren: Amy Molyneux, Jamie Christine James, Anny Molyneux, and Richard Maciel. He has one great-grandchild, Stephen James. He has numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family members.
Services will be held on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, at 10:00am, at St John Lutheran Church. Interment will follow at 1:00pm with Military Honors at Restlawn Memory Gardens. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to St. John Lutheran Church, or the charity of your choice.
Bob was the middle child of William and Sophia and was encircled throughout his childhood by older siblings, Norma Kroeplin Kliever and William Kroeplin (deceased), and younger siblings Gloria Kroeplin Bell (Luke) and James Kroeplin. He left Salem High School to serve his country during WWII at the age of 17, and saw military action as a United States Marine in Asia.
At the war’s end, Bob married Lauritta (Rita) O’Brien and they eventually settled on their beloved Salem Farm. Bob once again enlisted in the Military, this time with the United States Navy Construction Battalions (Seabees). For the next 20 years he served with the Seabees in the building of schools, roads, and other infrastructure projects, expanding and honing his construction skills that became part of the rest of his life.
Retiring from the Navy in 1983, Bob started his own business, Kroeplin Installations, a wood floor and counter-top installation business. He later added a sawmilling-to-order to his business enterprise. Many Salem homes and businesses are fortunate beneficiaries of Bob’s artistic eye and precision construction. Family members and friends were often gifted by Bob’s uniquely-crafted boxes and other keepsakes, and examples of his fine woodworking can be seen in St. John Church.
When not working, Bob could most often be found tinkering on an old tractor or any other equipment and indulging in his long-held passion of collecting old cars. It is said he had so many trucks and cars he had to start hiding them around Salem so Rita wouldn’t know of his many acquisitions. Bob and Rita spent the rest if their lives together on their farm, working, hosting family picnics, and gatherings and sharing life until her death on October 17th, 2009.
Bob is survived by his daughter: Suzanne Carlins (Duane), Melodye DiMare, his sisters Norma Kliever and Gloria Bell (Luke), and his brother James Kroeplin. He has four grandchildren: Amy Molyneux, Jamie Christine James, Anny Molyneux, and Richard Maciel. He has one great-grandchild, Stephen James. He has numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family members.
Services will be held on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, at 10:00am, at St John Lutheran Church. Interment will follow at 1:00pm with Military Honors at Restlawn Memory Gardens. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to St. John Lutheran Church, or the charity of your choice.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Robert L. Kroeplin, please visit our flower store.
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