Your memorial contribution in Robert’s name will be placed in the
West Aurora High School Alumni Scholarship Fund.
The original obituary listing can be found here.
Robert William Conklin of West Chester, OH passed away on November 11, 2020 at age 76 after a battle with COVID-19. Bob was born in October of 1944 in Aurora, Illinois and graduated from West Aurora High School, where he met Jennifer, his high school sweetheart and wife of 54 years.
He went on to earn BS and MS degrees in Civil Engineering from Purdue University and was employed at Procter and Gamble in Cincinnati, OH for 34 years before retiring to have, as he said, time to do the things he wanted to do. During his time with P&G he worked in many areas, designing new plants, managing projects, and eventually working in Cost Engineering as a Section Head. While based in Cincinnati, his early work with P&G took him and the family to England, Belgium, Mexico, and Birmingham, AL. In his later years he was transferred to Kobe, Japan and helped set up Cost Engineering for Southeast Asia.
Bob and Jennifer loved to travel and took every opportunity to visit new places, both abroad and in the US. After his retirement in 2001, Bob shared his skills and gifts in a life of volunteering and service. He joined the Executive Service Corps of Cincinnati, now OneSource, providing mentoring and advising for various non-profits including the Cincinnati Ballet, the Boy Scouts, the Cincinnati Boys Choir, and the Cincinnati Autism Society.
A life-long United Methodist, he lived out the Methodist commitment to personal and social holiness, continually open to new perspectives and ways of living out his faith. He was a long-time member of Forest Park UMC, where he sang in the choir and was a vital member of the leadership team.
Bob loved the outdoors and was an avid hiker; one of his proudest achievements was completing the 200-mile Coast-to-Coast Walk in England. His family and friends were fortunate to join him for other hikes in Ireland, Great Britain, and US locations including Death Valley and the Smokies. Every October he continued his father-in-law’s tradition of traveling to the Lake of the Woods area in Ontario, Canada for a week of duck hunting and fishing with a group of his friends. In keeping with his long-standing ties to Cincinnati, he and Jennifer have been Bengals season ticket holders since the team’s very first season. He loved to play tennis and did so 2-3 times a week until his recent illness.
He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Jennifer Critton Conklin; three wonderful daughters, Tara (Victor) Woods, Shannon (Jeffrey) Conklin-Miller, and Heather Conklin, and five much-loved grandchildren, Abriana Conklin, Ian Woods, Benjamin Woods, Emma Conklin-Miller and Ethan Conklin-Miller. He is also survived by nephews, Michael and Sam Gruen and great-nephew, Elliot Gruen.
It is difficult to express how much he will be missed by his family and friends around the world, but he leaves a legacy of faith, kindness, and service.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, he will have graveside service with immediate family at Lincoln Memorial Park in Aurora, IL on Saturday, November 21, 2020 at 11:30 AM CST.
The graveside service will be live streamed at the following link
https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/3363607
Your memorial contribution in Robert’s name will be placed in the
West Aurora High School Alumni Scholarship Fund.
