October 18, 2020
by Laura Adams
Robert Lloyd Adams passed away peacefully on October 15, 2020, surrounded by his children, to the sound of Willie Nelson singing classic gospel songs, precisely the way he would have wanted. He is survived by his daughters Holly Adams (56), Laura Adams (55), and Jennifer Adams Krumins (50), his son Bobby Adams (46) and grandchildren Brittanie Adams, Skylar Adams, Maria Adams, Art Krumins, and Felix Adams.
My Dad was born and raised in Norman, OK, along with his older brother, Jerry Adams. His parents, Lester and Lesta Adams, were educators, imparting intellectual gifts and a love of music. From a young age, Dad was creative and enterprising, illustrating his own comic book characters and setting up little income-producing schemes, such as charging family members a penny to pass through the doorways in their own home.
Music was always part of Dad’s life, and he played many instruments with skill and finesse -- including piano, guitar, banjo, mandolin, tuba, and harmonica. He served as president of his high school marching band, and went on to play in many bands with his friends, including the Hokie Oakies. He particularly was a fan of bluegrass, Dixieland and ragtime jazz, and classic country music. Dad wrote many songs of his own, including several odes to his children, and nearly all the songs on his self-produced album “Roll Call.” His title song, “Roll Call at Lou’s,” celebrated the festive subculture at “Lou’s Saloon” in Corpus Christie, established and run by the legendary South Texas business-owner, Lou Gray, a long-time friend of my Dad’s. My Dad never went anywhere without his guitar, and was ready at any moment to start picking Willie, Kris Kristofferson, Roger Miller, Johnny Cash, or some of his own tunes.
Dad readily made friends wherever he went, and – being smart, sweet, and funny – he was popular with the ladies. He had two marriages, to Carolyn and Pat, both beautiful, smart and feisty women. While the marriages did not last, the friendships and connections through children and family were enduring. Dad was a loyal and long-standing friend to many people, ranging from his childhood in Oklahoma, to his adulthood in Corpus Christi, to his golden years in Bandera, TX.
Dad went to college for one year at Harding University, then transferred to Oklahoma University, where he earned a degree in petroleum engineering. In his earlier years, he loved the life of a “roughneck,” working in the oil fields of South Texas and on drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. While my Dad enjoyed a lifestyle that was, at times, unpolished around the edges, he had a fine engineering mind and a keen intelligence, with wide-ranging interests. He liked to tinker, build and repair things. Years ago, fascinated by the technology of an 8-track cassette tape, he took one apart and rebuilt and repaired a broken tape -- not because this technology was still relevant, but because he could. He loved to cook, and those who knew him knew he cooked with gusto, often including more spices than the average person could handle. Some of his specialties included jerky and chili and ravioli and homemade bread -- including dense sourdough, with big chunks of cheddar cheese baked inside.
Dad loved to read and, at any point, he might be seen reading anything from classic comics, to the newspaper, to Carl Sagan, to Isaac Asimov. He often invited his children to share his interests, and had a way of explaining things that often flew way over our heads. Around the age of five, for example, we tried to grasp my father's explanation of the curvature of universe, as he asserted that "If you go far enough in one direction in space, you will end up where you started." It blew our minds then, but we later understood, and loved him for knowing such things and encouraging us to think about them.
Of course, the teachings he most revered came from the Bible. In the later decades of his life, he devoted himself to teaching classes at his church, the Bandera Church of Christ, and also through the World Bible School. Dad's church family at the Bandera Church of Christ were among his most cherished friendships, and we greatly appreciate their love and support of our Dad in the last years of his life.
My Dad was born and raised in Norman, OK, along with his older brother, Jerry Adams. His parents, Lester and Lesta Adams, were educators, imparting intellectual gifts and a love of music. From a young age, Dad was creative and enterprising, illustrating his own comic book characters and setting up little income-producing schemes, such as charging family members a penny to pass through the doorways in their own home.
Music was always part of Dad’s life, and he played many instruments with skill and finesse -- including piano, guitar, banjo, mandolin, tuba, and harmonica. He served as president of his high school marching band, and went on to play in many bands with his friends, including the Hokie Oakies. He particularly was a fan of bluegrass, Dixieland and ragtime jazz, and classic country music. Dad wrote many songs of his own, including several odes to his children, and nearly all the songs on his self-produced album “Roll Call.” His title song, “Roll Call at Lou’s,” celebrated the festive subculture at “Lou’s Saloon” in Corpus Christie, established and run by the legendary South Texas business-owner, Lou Gray, a long-time friend of my Dad’s. My Dad never went anywhere without his guitar, and was ready at any moment to start picking Willie, Kris Kristofferson, Roger Miller, Johnny Cash, or some of his own tunes.
Dad readily made friends wherever he went, and – being smart, sweet, and funny – he was popular with the ladies. He had two marriages, to Carolyn and Pat, both beautiful, smart and feisty women. While the marriages did not last, the friendships and connections through children and family were enduring. Dad was a loyal and long-standing friend to many people, ranging from his childhood in Oklahoma, to his adulthood in Corpus Christi, to his golden years in Bandera, TX.
Dad went to college for one year at Harding University, then transferred to Oklahoma University, where he earned a degree in petroleum engineering. In his earlier years, he loved the life of a “roughneck,” working in the oil fields of South Texas and on drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. While my Dad enjoyed a lifestyle that was, at times, unpolished around the edges, he had a fine engineering mind and a keen intelligence, with wide-ranging interests. He liked to tinker, build and repair things. Years ago, fascinated by the technology of an 8-track cassette tape, he took one apart and rebuilt and repaired a broken tape -- not because this technology was still relevant, but because he could. He loved to cook, and those who knew him knew he cooked with gusto, often including more spices than the average person could handle. Some of his specialties included jerky and chili and ravioli and homemade bread -- including dense sourdough, with big chunks of cheddar cheese baked inside.
Dad loved to read and, at any point, he might be seen reading anything from classic comics, to the newspaper, to Carl Sagan, to Isaac Asimov. He often invited his children to share his interests, and had a way of explaining things that often flew way over our heads. Around the age of five, for example, we tried to grasp my father's explanation of the curvature of universe, as he asserted that "If you go far enough in one direction in space, you will end up where you started." It blew our minds then, but we later understood, and loved him for knowing such things and encouraging us to think about them.
Of course, the teachings he most revered came from the Bible. In the later decades of his life, he devoted himself to teaching classes at his church, the Bandera Church of Christ, and also through the World Bible School. Dad's church family at the Bandera Church of Christ were among his most cherished friendships, and we greatly appreciate their love and support of our Dad in the last years of his life.