Robert A. Dodds - Teacher

 

On August 28, 2021, at 90 years of age, Robert A. Dodds completed a happy, interesting and productive lifetime. Born in 1931, he lived through the Great Depression, too young to recognize the problem. The years of World War II seemed exciting, but he was too young to see them as tragic.

The war ended and Bob entered Armijo High School in Fairfield, California. He played football and basketball and washed dishes in his parent's restaurant. Intending to get a college degree, he enrolled in Napa Junior College. Then, the Korean War erupted. Afraid he might be drafted into the Marines, he enlisted in the Air Force. He was trained at Lackland Air Force Base and then became an instructor. So, he defended his country from the barracks in San Antonio, Texas.

Upon his discharge, he enrolled at U.C. Berkeley and stayed there until he had earned an M.A. degree and his teaching certificate. Two years after beginning that career, he met and married the love of his life. Bob and Linda moved to Sonoma County and Bob taught history at Montgomery High School and then at Piner High the year it opened. He went on to teach History and Political Science at the Santa Rosa Junior College for twenty-one extremely enjoyable years, before finally retiring in 1990.

He had two bright and shiny children - a lovely daughter named Laura and a strong and handsome son named Adam. His family grew with the additions of his son-in-law Norm, his daughter-in-law Liz, and four delightful grandchildren (oldest to youngest) Kaitlyn, Kai, Ella and Peyton.

Bob was an avid fisherman, harassing salmon, steelhead, rockfish and trout throughout the Western states, Alaska, Baja and Canada. He was a wonderful gardener, wood carver, fly-tier, master of Jeopardy questions (excepting popular culture), lily propagator, Pho enthusiast and voracious reader (mostly history, from the profound to the incredibly obscure). In his later years, he also devoted a great deal of time to writing (in which his quirky sense of humor was often evident).

He lived for half a century on a lovely property west of Sebastopol. There, he spent time with his precious family, savored his wife's company and cooking, and watched the little trees he had planted grow to well over 100 feet tall. In his final years, he often marveled at what a satisfying and rewarding life he had enjoyed.

Yours was a wonderful journey, Bob.

Published by Press Democrat on Nov. 7, 2021.