ForeverMissed
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His Life

Bob Werley's Life

April 21, 2013

Robert (Bob) Preston Werley was born in San Diego, California on August 19, 1927. His father, Harold Martin Werley was originally from Toronto, Canada and his mother, Dorothy (Dudley) Werley, hailed from the Boston area.  Harold was a jeweler and Dorothy was a stenographer.

Bob was only 10 years old when Dorothy died of cancer. Bob and his younger sister, Marge, were sent to Minnesota to be raised by a wealthy childless couple who were friends of their mother. A few years later they were put back on a train to return to San Diego to live with their father. Harold was abusive to the children and to himself and died when Bob was about 16 years old. Bob and Marge were then taken in by Carl and Thora Thudium of San Diego.  Bob worked at Carl's butcher shop at the age of 16 while attending Hoover High School.

In spite of tough teenage years, Bob attended, and then graduated, Occidental College in Los Angeles in 1951. He was well known in college for his enchanted singing voice.  He was also an accomplished basketball player.  He married Maziebelle Rice from Palos Verdes Estates, California in 1951 and the two of them moved to Philladelphia for a few years. This is where his first daughter, Val, was born.

Bob loved to tell the story about his job interview at a car dealership in Philladelphia . He had listed the Dean of Occidental College as a reference.  Doubting that he actually knew the Dean, the manager of the dealership called the Dean of Occidental, right in front of Bob, and asked if he knew a Robert Werley. The Dean proceeded to gush about how fabulous Robert was as a student, as an athlete, and as a singer. Bob was hired on the spot.

Another great story that illustrates how well Bob could sing happened while Val was very young.  He sang one night and Frank Sinatra heard him sing. Frank sent over one of his men who invited Bob over to Frank's table!  When Bob went over to the table Frank told him that he was looking for new talent and was really impressed with Bob's voice. Frank then asked if Bob was married, to which he replied that he was. Bob used to say that he could visibly see Frank's face fall when he found out he was married, with a child, as Bob would have had to go on the road to seek his stardom.

Automobile sales became THE career for Bob, right up to the age of 85!  He and Mazie moved back to Southern California by 1953 and had 3 more children, Shelley, Rob, and Craig while he managed, and even owned his own car dealership.  They lived in Palos Verdes Estates, enjoyed the southern California beaches, and Bob became an avid tennis player.  He persistently tried to get at least one of his children excited about tennis, to no avail. Val and Shelley were already smitten by horses, and Rob by motorcycles.

Bob and Mazie were divorced in 1971.  Bob married Nan Cordes in 1973 and settled into family life with she and her three children, Greg, Lauren, and Jennifer. Toward the end of this 11 year marriage, Bob began traveling extensively to the east for work.  He settled in Boca Raton, Florida for a few years, but could not take the humidity and eventually found his way to Marietta, Georgia in approximately 1987.

Bob, a consumate salesman, worked in sales with Thermoguard Car Care Products for years.  He then worked for Car Consultants, a car locating service in the Atlanta area, alongside Scott Stewart for 13 years.  This meant he utilized the computer and various computer programs to help locate vehicles for customers, starting at the age of 72 and continued until his move to Idaho at the age of 85!  Many relatives own cars located and purchased through Bob.  This demonstrates a strong characteristic of Bob; a driving interest in almost everything in life.  It made him fun and interesting to be around.

Bob discovered a new passion shortly after moving to Marietta, Ballroom Dancing!  As with anything he attempted, he gave it his all and quickly excelled.  It was through the Dance Studio that he met a beautiful, talented, and fun dance instructor, Vonnie Heard.  Their romance began in 1989 and continued through his move to Idaho in 2013.  Bob loved athletics and dancing, so much so that he had 3 hip replacements in his life. The first one retired him from playing tennis, but he continued to dance after the next two hip replacements.  It was wonderful physical therapy.

Bob also joined a gym in Marietta and found a new family.  He adored his personal trainer, Jamie Brownlow, with her beautiful smile and no-nonsense approach.  Their friendship extended past the gym when they would accompany each other to a movie or dinner.  Jamie, along with Vonnie, were the family's angels in Georgia; helping Bob during several health crises in the recent past.  How lucky we all are that they were in his life.

Bob's children, all on the west coast, pestered him for a decade to move west to be closer to them.  His love for Vonnie, his friends, his work, and his co-workers kept him in Marietta, Georgia.  It wasn't until a series of health issues came up in the last year, that Bob finally admitted he needed to be close to his family. He moved to Hayden, Idaho on February 11th of 2013 to live with daughter Shelley and her husband Ron.  It was quite an adjustment for all at first, but Bob, who loved to partake of life, was soon driving again, working out at an incredible gym, the Ray and Joan Kroc Center of Coeur d'Alene, in spite of bad knees and an arthritic back.  After a bit of coaxing, (he didn't want to be around a bunch of old fogies) he finally checked out the local Senior Center, started eating lunch there several times a week, played some bridge, and was learning Pinochle.  He was brought down by an unrecoverable hemmoraghic stroke just after his Arthritis Gentle water excercise class on April 11th. Of course it was a huge surprise, as there was so much more we planned to enjoy together. He hadn't even made one of his famous cheesecakes yet!!  He was never in any pain and passed on April 15th at the Hospice House of Hayden, Idaho. His body was strong and delayed his parting.
 
Old persons are sometimes as unwilling to die
as tired-out children are to say good night and go to bed.
- Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

 Hospice House was THE perfect place for our family to say goodbye to Bob. Plus, they had cookies and soup  available every day. Bob would have loved it......

The family 'memorialized' Bob every evening at dinner with some tequila on the rocks and a few lime squeezes, and dessert. :)  Bob loved his Molten Lava Chocolate cake at Chili's, so we celebrated his life at Chili's on the 15th, sharing the Fajita's Trio and finishing with the Lava Cake.     

Bob's family hopes that this Memorial site helps bring closure for others and we also hope that you will contribute your thoughts, stories, and/or photos to this site in his memory. We are sure there are some of each that we have never heard of!  The site is to remain online forever, for each of us to return to for connection, reflection, and for posterity to enjoy.  If you have difficulty uploading photos etc. please contact me, Shelley Ball, at shelleyball@roadrunner.com so I might help.   

If you wish to contribute in Bob Werley's name, here are some ideas:

Lake City Senior Center    
1916 Lakewood Drive    
Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814   

Hospice of North Idaho (Or any non-profit Hospice in your area)
9493 N. Government Way
Hayden, ID 83835  

All of our love to you

You can shed tears that he is gone
Or you can smile because he has lived

You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back
Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left

Your heart can be empty because you can’t see him
Or you can be full of the love that you shared

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday

You can remember him and only that he is gone
Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on

You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what he would want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on.

Adapted from a poem by David Harkins