ROBERT KING SLOANE

ROBERT SLOANE Obituary

SLOANE, Robert King Age 85, of Brookline, passed away on May 12, 2021 with his loving wife of 59 years, Regina Healy, at his side. Born in Lima, Ohio, Bob first came to Boston to pursue graduate studies in urban planning, after which he and Regie took their infant son, Burt, to Germany on a Fulbright scholarship for study at the Universität Bonn. Their return to the US was followed by the adoption of their daughter, Sydney, and the birth of their son Jacob. Bob cared a lot about his chosen city and worked hard to make it a better place to live and work. In his role as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Assistant Secretary of Transportation, which began the planning of the Central Artery project, he was active in encouraging public participation and in listening to the needs of the cities and towns of the Boston region. He was an instrumental part of the team that relocated the Orange Line in Boston's Southwest Corridor and worked on the Central Artery. Mid-career, he obtained a law degree from Northeastern University School of Law, after which he and Regie published the Maine Law Review with friends. Bob co-founded WalkBoston and became a passionate advocate for pedestrian access and for appreciating the city and all cities on foot. He edited the book "Walking Tours of Boston's Unique Neighborhoods," which reveals usually overlooked secrets and charms of his beloved Boston. For all of this, he was recognized by the White House as a Transportation Innovator "Champion of Change" in 2012. He also championed local causes as a Town Meeting member for Brookline. Through the many years of their marriage, Bob and Regie supported each other through the loss of a child, several job changes, multiple moves, and many travel adventures and medical mishaps. Their deep bond was an inspiration to everyone in their lives. Together they enjoyed summers on the Cape with their grandchildren, going to plays and operas, and contemporary literature. Bob's various hobbies included painting, genealogy, and self-publishing a book on the courthouses of Maine. Bob was a model spouse, a loving father, and a doting grandfather. Bob was preceded in death by his daughter Sydney and by his sister, Jeanne Wert. He is survived by his wife, by his son Burt Sloane and daughter-in-law Lisa Sands of San Francisco, by his son Jacob Sloane and daughter-in-law Cynthia Hayne of Brookline, by his grandchildren Eleanor Sloane and Owen Sloane, and by his nephew Mark Wert of Cincinnati. Services will be private. Donations in Bob's name may be made to WalkBoston at www.WalkBoston.org

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Published by Boston Globe from May 14 to May 16, 2021.

Memories and Condolences
for ROBERT SLOANE

6 Entries

Paul Roy

Planted Trees

Renata von Tscharner

Planted Trees

Joyce Whitaker

May 20, 2021

I am so sorry to here of Bob's passing. Ted and I just found out today. Who would think Bob and his sister would part a year from each other. Wonderful people, they will sure be missed.

Alan Altshuler

May 16, 2021

Bob was first and foremost a caring, compassionate, charming person. To boot, he was a superb professional, and one who made an enormous positive contribution to the quality of life in Boston. I last worked with him in the 1970s, but I recall him vividly, with great affection and admiration, and I'm deeply saddened by his passing.

Chris Dempsey

May 15, 2021

A version of the below was shared with the Brookline Town Meeting Member email listserv.
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I am sharing the sad news that former Precinct 1 Town Meeting Member Bob Sloane passed away on Wednesday, with his loving wife of 59 years, Regina Healy, at his side.

Bob was a remarkable person who leaves an enormous legacy in Brookline and across Greater Boston. In particular, Bob was active in the transportation world, as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts's Assistant Secretary of Transportation (a title that, coincidentally, I held a decade or two after Bob did). Bob was a co-founder of WalkBoston, which grew from a grassroots organization into one of the most important influential transportation advocacy groups in Massachusetts. Bob was recognized by the Obama Administration as a Transportation Innovator "Champion of Change" in 2012. In addition to serving in Town Meeting, Bob was also a member of Brookline's Pedestrian Advisory Committee.

Bob's obituary in the Boston Globe, which is beautifully written and shares important aspects of his life that I have not described, is available here:

https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bostonglobe/obituary.aspx?n=robert-king-sloane&pid=198657842

Donations in Bob's name may be made to WalkBoston at www.WalkBoston.org.

I am one of many who will miss Bob terribly, but who also have great respect and appreciation for all that he gave us in his time with us. My thoughts are with his family.

John A. Fiske

May 14, 2021

Look at him. He was always smiling, except when he was saying something that was invariably cheerful or positive, and except when he was laughing at something you said. Even in the griefs the obituary defined he tried to
make others feel welcome and at ease. The only thing that could upset
him was bad city planning, because he loved cities and was devoted to helping cities work. I was not on the bus in Vienna with Bob but I heard about it, when Bob who had never been there had to show the driver who got lost how to get to the hotel for their son's Junior Boston Symphony tour. How can anyone master the streets of Vienna? He loved it, that's how, He became legendary, and the rest of us will have to work to fill or just try to accept the void.

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