Robert Jay Marcus passed away peacefully on January 26th, 2026 in Bellevue, Washington, with his loved ones by his side.
Bob was born on September 17th, 1955 to Sanford and Hanna Marcus in San Francisco, California, and quickly made a name for himself. Shortly after his birth, he was kidnapped from the hospital, which resulted in the state’s largest manhunt to date. Located a few days later at a boxing match in Stockton, he was returned to his relieved parents. Sanford was a well-respected surgeon and Hanna a Holocaust survivor; together with their family, they were active in the Bay Area Jewish community, a formative pillar of Bob’s identity.
Bob had a happy childhood in Daly City surrounded by his parents, his siblings Rick, Susan, and Carol, his nanny Earldean, and a bevy of aunts, uncles, and cousins. In high school he played piano and grew to love cycling, spending many sunny weekends pedaling the hills of the Golden Gate. Regular family trips to Yosemite secured that spectacular landscape as his lifelong spiritual home.
For college he hopped across the Bay to attend U.C. Berkeley, where he pursued a major in zoology, remembering with particular fondness his term at Bodega Bay Marine Laboratory. He also was a proud member of the Berkeley chapter of AEPhi: “the nation’s only co-ed sorority.” It was around this time that he became a devotee of the Grateful Dead, a musical passion that he would gleefully inflict upon his loved ones for years to come.
Following college he pursued master’s work in aquaculture at the University of Illinois and an MBA at the University of Wisconsin. He worked a brief stint for W.R. Grace in New York City before being transferred to Honolulu, where a new chapter of his life would begin.
It was at a folk dancing group in Hawaii where Bob first spotted Ellen Bloom, a radiant young doctor doing research at Honolulu Heart Hospital. Mutually love-struck, they were both too nervous to eat during their first date. The next Valentine’s Day, Bob got down on one knee on a white sand beach with a rose and a ring. Ellen said yes immediately. They married at an intimate, flower-bedecked family wedding at Waimea Falls Park that July. Despite getting laid off just a few days later, Bob and Ellen honeymooned in Yosemite, Australia, and New Zealand.
Fatherhood followed quickly on the heels of marriage. Laura was born the next year and David less than two years after that. Bob quickly learned how to hold a baby and change a diaper, and as a family they enjoyed the marvelous beaches and mountains of Oahu.
In 1992, Bob and Ellen and the kids moved to Indianapolis to be closer to family. After a joyful year of being the kids’ primary caregiver, Bob took a job as budget director at Butler University, where he would rise through the ranks and remain for the rest of his career. Always the first one in the office in the morning, he was beloved by his colleagues for always making the first pot of coffee. He was proud to put his financial skills in service of Butler's educational mission.
Family always came first for Bob, followed by his work and community service. Over the years he volunteered at soup kitchens, served on nonprofit boards, was an active member of the Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, and helped care for elderly relatives and neighbors. In his free time, he loved hiking through Indiana’s state parks, cooking bodacious meals, and tormenting his children with a bottomless arsenal of dad jokes. Family vacations were another highlight of his life, including trips to Italy, Mexico, the Galapagos, and Botswana. Yet no place ever held a candle to his beloved Yosemite, where the family returned frequently to revel in the splendor of “nature’s cathedral.”
Bob sadly fell victim to frontotemporal dementia in the last years of his life, though he recognized and loved his family right up to the very end. After more than 30 years in Indianapolis, he and Ellen had recently moved to Bellevue, Washington last November to be closer to their children.
Bob leaves behind his beloved wife, Ellen; two children, Laura (Zach) and David (Kaylin); one grandson, Salix; his siblings Richard (Ziporah), Susan, and Carol (Bill); and an abundance of nephews, nieces, cousins, and other friends and relatives.
We will cherish Bob’s memory forever. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to one of the charities close to his heart:
The American Civil Liberties Union: https://action.aclu.org/give/make-gift-aclu-someones-memory
The Indiana Parks Alliance: https://indianaparksalliance.org/donations/
The Yosemite Conservancy: https://yosemite.org/giving/gifts-in-memory-honor/
Bob was born on September 17th, 1955 to Sanford and Hanna Marcus in San Francisco, California, and quickly made a name for himself. Shortly after his birth, he was kidnapped from the hospital, which resulted in the state’s largest manhunt to date. Located a few days later at a boxing match in Stockton, he was returned to his relieved parents. Sanford was a well-respected surgeon and Hanna a Holocaust survivor; together with their family, they were active in the Bay Area Jewish community, a formative pillar of Bob’s identity.
Bob had a happy childhood in Daly City surrounded by his parents, his siblings Rick, Susan, and Carol, his nanny Earldean, and a bevy of aunts, uncles, and cousins. In high school he played piano and grew to love cycling, spending many sunny weekends pedaling the hills of the Golden Gate. Regular family trips to Yosemite secured that spectacular landscape as his lifelong spiritual home.
For college he hopped across the Bay to attend U.C. Berkeley, where he pursued a major in zoology, remembering with particular fondness his term at Bodega Bay Marine Laboratory. He also was a proud member of the Berkeley chapter of AEPhi: “the nation’s only co-ed sorority.” It was around this time that he became a devotee of the Grateful Dead, a musical passion that he would gleefully inflict upon his loved ones for years to come.
Following college he pursued master’s work in aquaculture at the University of Illinois and an MBA at the University of Wisconsin. He worked a brief stint for W.R. Grace in New York City before being transferred to Honolulu, where a new chapter of his life would begin.
It was at a folk dancing group in Hawaii where Bob first spotted Ellen Bloom, a radiant young doctor doing research at Honolulu Heart Hospital. Mutually love-struck, they were both too nervous to eat during their first date. The next Valentine’s Day, Bob got down on one knee on a white sand beach with a rose and a ring. Ellen said yes immediately. They married at an intimate, flower-bedecked family wedding at Waimea Falls Park that July. Despite getting laid off just a few days later, Bob and Ellen honeymooned in Yosemite, Australia, and New Zealand.
Fatherhood followed quickly on the heels of marriage. Laura was born the next year and David less than two years after that. Bob quickly learned how to hold a baby and change a diaper, and as a family they enjoyed the marvelous beaches and mountains of Oahu.
In 1992, Bob and Ellen and the kids moved to Indianapolis to be closer to family. After a joyful year of being the kids’ primary caregiver, Bob took a job as budget director at Butler University, where he would rise through the ranks and remain for the rest of his career. Always the first one in the office in the morning, he was beloved by his colleagues for always making the first pot of coffee. He was proud to put his financial skills in service of Butler's educational mission.
Family always came first for Bob, followed by his work and community service. Over the years he volunteered at soup kitchens, served on nonprofit boards, was an active member of the Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, and helped care for elderly relatives and neighbors. In his free time, he loved hiking through Indiana’s state parks, cooking bodacious meals, and tormenting his children with a bottomless arsenal of dad jokes. Family vacations were another highlight of his life, including trips to Italy, Mexico, the Galapagos, and Botswana. Yet no place ever held a candle to his beloved Yosemite, where the family returned frequently to revel in the splendor of “nature’s cathedral.”
Bob sadly fell victim to frontotemporal dementia in the last years of his life, though he recognized and loved his family right up to the very end. After more than 30 years in Indianapolis, he and Ellen had recently moved to Bellevue, Washington last November to be closer to their children.
Bob leaves behind his beloved wife, Ellen; two children, Laura (Zach) and David (Kaylin); one grandson, Salix; his siblings Richard (Ziporah), Susan, and Carol (Bill); and an abundance of nephews, nieces, cousins, and other friends and relatives.
We will cherish Bob’s memory forever. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to one of the charities close to his heart:
The American Civil Liberties Union: https://action.aclu.org/give/make-gift-aclu-someones-memory
The Indiana Parks Alliance: https://indianaparksalliance.org/donations/
The Yosemite Conservancy: https://yosemite.org/giving/gifts-in-memory-honor/
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Robert Jay Marcus, please visit our flower store.
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