Robert A. Grimm

1926 - 2015

Robert A. Grimm
Dec. 26, 1926 - March 21, 2015
Resident of Los Altos
Bob Grimm was born in Macon, MO in 1926. He passed away on March 21, 2015 of sudden cardiac arrest while traveling with friends on safari in Tanzania, Africa; he was 88 years young.
Just out of high school he enlisted in the Navy and served stateside until a year after WWII ended. He attended Valparaiso University, and then received both his bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering from Purdue University.
He joined Hewlett-Packard as a development engineer in 1951. In 1953 he married Marion Ruth Graham. In 1962 they moved from Mt. View to Los Altos to accommodate a growing family of five kids and remained at the same Los Altos home until his death.
From 1956 to 1968, Bob served as manufacturing manager and later general manager of HP's Dymec Division. He next served as marketing manager for HP's Systems Division and Automatic Measurement Division. In 1974 he was appointed director of the company's Integrated Circuits Laboratory in HP's central research laboratories. In 1978 he was made director of the company's Technology Research Center for semiconductor research. He was selected to create and direct the Manufacturing Research Center in 1984, which he did until his retirement in 1986.
Bob was active in community affairs. He was a volunteer worker for the United Way organization for 20 years, more than half of those on the board of trustees of the United Way of Santa Clara County where he served as president (1974 and 1975). He served as president of the United Way of California from 1978 to 1980.
He was elected to a four-year term on the Los Altos City Council in 1976, and was appointed mayor of the City in 1979. He was re-elected to a second four-year term on the Council in 1980.
He has served on the boards of the American Red Cross, the YMCA of the Mid-Peninsula, Foothill-De Anza Colleges Foundation, the Los Altos Community Foundation, Center for Excellence in Nonprofits, Downtown College Prep (a charter high school), the Bank of Los Altos, and Resource Area for Teaching He also served on the Finance and Audit Committee of the Foothill-De Anza Community Colleges. At the time of his death he was serving on the boards of the Tech Museum of Innovation and the Los Altos Festival of Lights Association.
Bob was a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He was a member of Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi, and Eta Kappa Nu: science, engineering and electrical engineering honor societies. He was a registered engineer in the State of California.
Bob is survived by his four children: Thomas (Veronica), Sue (Clyde) Cummings, Mike (Donna), and Patty, his 10 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister-in-law Jane and her three sons David, Mark and John and his brother-in-law Stan and his two daughters Kathy and Kristen, as well as all of their children.
Marion, his wife for 55 years, died in 2008. He is also predeceased by his son Terry, his brother Stan and his sister Donna Geiger.
Bob will be sorely missed by his family and his many close and dear friends who all enriched his life as much as he did theirs through his spirit of generosity, fun, hard work, and lifelong curiosity that never waned to the end.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Tech Museum of Innovation, Los Altos History Museum, or Downtown College Prep-general fund or their Bob Grimm Scholarship Fund or to any Bob-related charity of your choice.
A memorial event is scheduled for Saturday, May 2, at 2:00pm at Parkside Hall, 180 Park Ave., San Jose (adjacent to the Tech Museum of Innovation).