Robert Floyd (“Bob”) Wenger, age 90, passed away on October 22, 2024. He was born in Bluffton, Ohio on September 6, 1934, the son of Floyd E. and Eula (Wohlgamuth) Wenger.
Bob had fond memories of his high school days and excelled on both the football and baseball teams. He graduated from Bluffton High School, then Ohio University with a degree in Chemistry. He served as an Army medic at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. After his discharge, Bob began his career as a chemist with DuPont. He was an expert first in cellophane formulation and later in water-based explosives. He travelled nationally and internationally to consult with clients on construction and quarry projects, often with his wife Lorene at his side.
Bob met Lorene on a blind date in Elkhart, Indiana. They were married in Millersburg, Ohio on March 25, 1960, and enjoyed more than 40 years of marriage together. They started out living in New Jersey, then were transferred to Beaumont, Texas where their family grew by two – son, Mitch and daughter, Tecya. Additional transfers moved the family to Wilmington, Delaware; Crawfordsville, Indiana; Fircrest (Tacoma), Washington; and finally, Morris, Illinois in late 1975.
Bob was always tolerant, kind, good natured and ready to help others. He was a Little League coach who routinely travelled with the entire team piled into the family’s 1968 Dodge Monaco. Win or lose, Bob treated the team to ice cream after the game. As his children grew, he was often seen in the crowd encouraging and cheering for them at various sporting events and other activities.
Bob enjoyed music and as a member of the First United Methodist Church in Morris, he sang in the choir for many years and enjoyed participating in the Sunday evening couple’s Bible Study. He was also a member of the Lions Club Organization in many capacities and was also a Paul Harris Fellow in the Morris Rotary Club.
After retiring from DuPont, Bob and Lorene moved to Berlin, Ohio. Circumstances changed, and the couple divorced. After that, Bob moved to Lakeland, Florida. There, he was a board member of Talbot House Ministries homeless shelter, volunteered with Take a Kid Fishing, and sang in multiple choirs, including the Bach Festival Society Choir, where he performed with them on a tour of Great Britain and Ireland.
He was a world traveler, but also enjoyed time visiting his children and grandchildren. He was also a man of faith and a faithful follower of Christ. As his health began to fail, Bob moved to Oxford, Mississippi to be closer to family.
Bob was preceded in death by his parents, former wife Lorene, brother, Richard, and three sisters, Eula Wenger, Eileen Swank, and Roberta Wenger-Amstutz.
He is survived by his children, Mitchell and Debora Wenger of Oxford, Mississippi and Tecya and Kirk Anderson of rural Lisbon, Illinois along with grandchildren Jackie (Michael) Youmans of Champaign, Illinois; Kirstie Anderson (fiancée Pat Garvey) of Chicago, Illinois; and Jay Wenger of Oxford, Mississippi along with many nieces and nephews.
Memorials may be directed to the Dementia Society of America (https://www.dementiasociety.org/donate).
Private services will be held at the Berlin Township Cemetery in Berlin, Ohio.
