BOB BARTLETT

March 7, 1929 – Nov. 8, 2015

My stepfather was not a super man, or a super dad for that matter. Who he turned out to be is rare enough. Bob Bartlett was an old-fashioned, decent fellow who kept his feelings, if not his opinions, to himself. The oldest of 13 children, born into a poverty that encompassed everyone he knew, he didn’t remember his childhood as poor. The stories he told of those times were sad, funny and brave.

He served his country. He worked. He enjoyed sports. He devoured the newspaper every day. He worried about Springfield, the world and the future. He voted. He gave small amounts to many charities all the time. He volunteered. He never had much money but if he had a little, he was content.

Bob Bartlett was a quintessential American of his time. Not a big dreamer or doer but a man who did what had to be done each day, rested, then repeated the process. I will always be glad to have known this honorable man.

Sue Anderson, stepdaughter