Robert "Bob" Stebbins

1933 - 2022

Robert "Bob" Stebbins

August 30, 1933 - December 29, 2022

Robert "Bob" Stebbins passed peacefully in his room at Regent Court Memory Care on the afternoon of December 29, 2022.He was preceded by his younger brother, George; wife, Lola; parents, Ledyard and Margaret; and older sister, Edith. He is survived by his second wife, Monine Strode Stebbins; daughter, Myong Stebbins and her husband, Randy Hellstern; sons, Daniel Park and David Stebbins; granddaughter, Cari Stebbins and her husband, Owen Brush; and grandson, Charles Stebbins. His extended family includes stepson, John Strode; stepdaughter, Susan Strode and their spouses Lynn Freitas and Dave Nelson. He will be missed by friends and colleagues too numerous to count.

Bob was born in Baltimore, Maryland but grew up in California, spending his early life in Berkeley, where his father was a professor, and graduating from Carmel High School. He earned an undergraduate degree in forestry from Colorado State University where he was enrolled in the ROTC program. Upon graduation, he was stationed in South Korea as a first lieutenant, part of the US Korean Military Advisory Group. In Korea, he met Myong Ok "Lola" Park, and they were married in Seoul on March 28, 1958.Upon returning to the US, Bob pursued further education, earning a master's degree from UC Davis (1959) and PhD from Michigan State University in 1970. He worked for Oregon State University Cooperative Extension Service while he completed his terminal degree. He remained with the OSU extension service as a core fruit expert and apple growing consultant until the late 1980s. He was active in developing and promoting new, better-tasting varieties of apples. Although apples were Bob's specialty, he co-authored a number of pamphlets and conference papers on a variety of horticultural topics, such as irrigation, pruning, and disease management. He traveled extensively as part of his work, sharing expertise with apple growers in Europe, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. As his career thrived, his family grew. He and Lola had three children (David, Daniel, and Marcia "Myong") between 1959 and 1964. Sadly, Lola was killed in an automobile accident in November of 1981.

Bob married Monine Strode, also widowed, in December of 1982. So it was Monine who accompanied him on most of his international travels. It was also Monine, along with her son John, who helped Bob start his own apple business, Brooklane Specialty Apples. Together they planted an orchard on property Bob had purchased just south of the OSU campus, cared for the trees, harvested fruit, sold their product at farmers' markets, and pressed cider. Bob only fully retired when he and Monine sold the business in the early 2000s.

Bob and Monine were extremely active retirees. They were involved with a Sister Cities program that took them to the Ukraine twice. They participated in several book clubs, went dancing regularly, and explored the Oregon coast in their Volkswagen camper van. They were well-known for their wonderful hospitality, opening their home to study-abroad horticulture students and--more recently--to musicians taking part in the Chintimini Music Festival. Thanksgiving at Bob and Monine's was legendary, with Bob's most important rolls being the ever-affable host and delivery-driver for Monine's famous pies.

Bob had an artistic side as well. He loved music and played the piano. He was an avid and prolific landscape painter, working mostly in acrylics and occasionally watercolors.

Bob used to jokingly call himself "Parsimonious Bob" but he was actually quite generous with his resources as well as his time. He volunteered his time with homeless shelters, Veterans for Peace, and his church, to name just a few organizations. He was always concerned with social justice and making the world a better place. In the last decade or so of his life, he was a particularly strong advocate for universal health care. Bob knew he had been unusually fortunate in life and believed firmly in "paying forward" his good fortune.

No date has been set for a memorial service.

Anyone wishing to honor Bob's memory, please consider a donation to one of the following: your local homeless shelter or food bank, Sister Cities International, Ukraine Refugees, Hospice, or the Alzheimer's Association.