Benjamin Tucker III

1938 - 2010

Benjamin Robert (Bobby) Tucker III passed away surrounded by family on November 9, 2010 after a long and courageous battle with brain cancer. He was born on August 25, l938 in Clearwater, Florida to the late Benjamin Robert Tucker, Jr. and Hazel Clark.
He resided most of his young life with his grandmother, Gladys Booth Tucker in the town of Safety Harbor, Florida. He attended elementary school in Safety Harbor where his grandmother was a teacher for many years, graduating from Clearwater High School in June of 1956.
He volunteered for the Air Force in August of 1956 and served the latter part of his duty at Charleston Air Force Base in Charleston, SC where he met his beloved wife, Margaret.
After his honorable discharge from the Air Force in August of 1960 he and his wife, Margaret, moved first to Daytona Beach for a few months and then on to North Palm Beach, Florida. He began his banking career that year at the First Marine Bank of Riviera Beach, Florida, where he held numerous positions in the bank and served it well for twenty years.
In August of 1979 Bob moved his family to Jacksonville, Florida. He joined Marine National Bank, which was in the process of being sold by the First Marine Group to P. Douglas Freedle of Janus Financial. He and Mr. Freedle enjoyed a 30 year banking relationship involving numerous banks throughout the State with the final one for Bob being Coastal Bank in Cocoa Beach, Florida. He served as Chairman of the Board of Coastal for ten years until he became ill.
Bob has been a longtime member of the American Hemerocallis Society, The North Florida Daylily Society and the Suwannee Valley Hemerocallis Society. He and his grandson, Chris, grew and hybridized daylilies for a number of years, entering their blooms in daylily shows across the State. It was a wonderful hobby they enjoyed together.
Bob is survived by his beloved wife of fifty years, Margaret; two daughters, Diane Elaine Arsenault (Lee) and Barbara Jean Miranda (Paul); two grandchildren, Christopher Robert Arsenault (his special big guy) and Rebecca Arsenault (his beautiful princess) all of Jacksonville, Florida; three step-children, Billy, Judy and Libby; and step-grandchildren, BJ, David, Rusty, Jennifer, Matthew, Emily and Charles, all of South Carolina.
Bob was always a wonderful, loving husband, father and grandfather and friend to all he met. His first thoughts and main concerns in life were for family and not himself. He was a gentle soul and great teacher in how to treat one another. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and business associates.
The family would like to thank Dr. Howard Chandler, Dr. Mark Augspurger, Dr. Jeffrey DiMascio and their respective dedicated staff, for their care during Bob's fight to stay one step ahead of his brain cancer. Also, a special thanks to Dr. Bud Wolfson for being the best family physician for the past 27 years and for always being there.
Please join the family for a memorial service to celebrate his life to be held at Deermeadows Baptist Church, 9780 Baymeadows Rd., Jacksonville, FL 32256 on Saturday, November 13, 2010 at 1:00 pm.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Northeast Florida Community Hospice, 4266 Sunbeam Road, Jacksonville, FL 32257. Their personnel helped make Bob comfortable as he traveled the last steps of his long battle with brain cancer. We will always be grateful for their help and compassionate, caring attitude.
Oaklawn Cemetery and Funeral Home, 4801 San Jose Blvd., Jacksonville, FL 32207 is serving the family.