Robert J. Wilks

1950 - 2015

Robert "Bob" Wilks Jr., 65, passed away at home on Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. He was born in Anaconda, Mont., on Aug. 21, 1950, and moved with his family to Alaska in June 1960, where he claimed his Alaska residency for the remaining 55 years of his life. During this time, Bob attended and graduated from East Anchorage High School class of '69 and went on to graduate from college at Carroll College in Montana class of '73 with a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration Majoring in Finance. Bob met his life partner and wife, Shannon Service, in Alaska, on a blind date and have been together in marriage spanning 43 years in length. Bob and Shannon added to their family with the birth of their daughter, Keely, who eight years ago gave Bob and Shannon their first beautiful granddaughter, Julia. From the very beginning of his professional career, Bob was involved with the development of Alaska's oil industry starting first to oversee construction of the Alaska Pipeline through his employment with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, then working for British Petroleum Company and finally finishing up his professional career at Conoco Phillips. In total, Bob's professional career in Alaska's oil industry spanned more than 30 years and he was considered by many of his peers to have considerable expertise in many of the operations of oil service operations in Alaska. Bob also enjoyed many of the outdoor activities Alaska has to offer. He enjoyed camping, boating, rafting and fishing with friends and family. As a duck hunter, many people thought he was a conservationist because he rarely came back with any birds, however, those people who know Bob best knew he was simply a bad marksman. Bob would probably claim he simply liked being out in the field during hunting season and also didn't really like the taste of wild duck. Perhaps the real truth on this matter lies somewhere in between. But what we all do accurately remember is Bob enjoying having dinner parties at his home, where he excelled in cooking ribs on the grill and other entrees to include fresh salmon and halibut and delicious side dishes. When you got a call from Bob for a dinner invitation, you could always expect the same reply to your inquiry on what you could bring for dinner. His response almost always was, "You just need to bring a smile on your face." When dinner was finished, you could also count on the same farewell, "Thanks for coming over and keep your tailgate up." Bob is survived in death by his wife, Shannon; and daughter, Keely and her husband Matt and their daughter Julia. Bob is also survived in death by his father, Robert Sr.; his mother, Dolores; his brother, David and his wife Colette; his bother, Ed and his wife Deb; and his brother, Bill and his husband Antonio. The family has planned a reception in honor of Bob's life on Monday, Oct. 5, 2015, at 2941 Westwind Court in Anchorage, Alaska, from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.