Robert Lyle "Bob" Dickerson

INTERLAKEN– "It isn't your birthday until Grandpa calls." Bob Dickerson was famous for always remembering your birthday. With the help of a calendar that tracked four generations of descendants and their loved ones, he'd send home-printed cards with a bit of cash for treating yourself, and he always, always called or left a voicemail with his gorgeous 1940's-style voice crooning a personalized "Happy Birthday" to you.

Bob was a longtime resident of Interlaken, N.Y. His teenage years found him doing odd jobs (and a little bit of mischief), becoming the jack-of-all trades we all knew and loved. He developed his sweet-tooth as a soda jerk making his favorite root beer floats. Bob left Interlaken High School shortly before graduating, enlisting in the Navy in December 1944. He trained at Sampson Naval Training Station in Romulus, N.Y., and served as an Electrician's Mate on the USS Proserpine, touring in the Philippines until his honorable discharge in 1946.

After the Navy, Bob settled back in Interlaken, married his beloved wife Phyllis, and started his family. He lost Phyllis far too young in 1962, leaving him with three young girls to care for. A fourth daughter was born in 1965 from a second marriage. Bob always ensured his girls knew they were loved. From small projects to major undertakings, he built everything from sandboxes decorated with hand-painted drawings to a family home on Knight Street in Interlaken - using only hand tools, and working nights and weekends for two years until it was complete.

Bob was well-known throughout Interlaken. At the Interlaken Post Office, Bob worked as a Rural Letter Carrier from the mid-1950's to 1982. During the snow storms of upstate NY, he would make sure the mail got delivered, even trudging through with snowshoes to ensure mail made it to homes. Bob retired from the Postal Service after 30 years. He also served as President of the Interlaken School Board for nine years, presiding over the merger of the Interlaken and South Seneca districts, and then serving on the board for an additional three years.

Bob lived a long and happy retired life - telling stories, singing songs, and making friends with the ladies wherever he lived. He loved helping others, including volunteering at the Geneva Hospital, working with hospice, and as a resident of the Boyle Center in Auburn lending a helping hand whenever it was needed. In his eighties, he joined a women's choir, quickly renamed to "The 80's Ladies & a Gent." It was there that he started to sing the song, "Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)," which he sang until he died. He believed in living life simply, sneaking sweets into the hands of his youngest family members, and loved rooting for "my Yankees." Until the end, he never wanted anyone to make a fuss.

Robert Lyle Dickerson passed in peace on November 21, 2023, in Horseheads, N.Y., one day after his 96th birthday. He spent his last birthday surrounded by his daughters. A genuinely loving father and head of family for many many years, a lover of life and maker of birthdays, it's fitting that Bob was sung a soft "Happy Birthday" the night before he passed.

We were all better for having you in our lives. We love you.

Robert Lyle Dickerson, son of Joseph M. Dickerson and Alice Wixom Dickerson, was born in Ithaca, N.Y. on November 20, 1927.

Predeceased by wife, Phyllis Walker Dickerson, and wife Evelyn VanDamme; sisters Jean Andrews and Jacqueline Herendeen; and great-grandchildren Felicia Westervelt and Orion Hwang.

Survived by brother David Dickerson of Maryland; daughters Cheryl Westervelt of Interlaken, N.Y., Jan Murphey of Horseheads, N.Y., Kathy Sweet of Poplar Ridge, N.Y., Sandra Delaney of Madisonville, Tenn.; grandchildren Karl Westervelt, Michelle Morse, Rebecca Murphey, Morgan Murphey, Amy Williamson, Garrett Murphey, Kathryn Delaney, Jenna Delaney; fourteen great-grandchildren; and one great-great grandchild.

Funeral services were held at Mull Funeral Home in Waterloo, N.Y., on November 25, 2023, followed by interment at Lakeview Cemetery in Interlaken, N.Y.

Memorial donations can be made to area hospice provider: CareFirstNY Hospice, 3805 Meads Creek Road, Painted Post, N.Y. 14870.