Robert Speiser

1953 - 2024

Robert Speiser

Amherst, MA - Robert passed away on October 3, 2024 at the age of 71 due to complications from a massive stroke. Born in Decatur, Alabama his family moved back to New York, NY where Robert attended PS6 and Horace Mann. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in literature. He received his Juris Doctor and MBA from The University of Chicago.

After a brief career in corporate law, Robert became vice president at Health-Chem Corp where creating transdermal patches for administering medications. He later became CEO of Union Broach where he invented and received patents on several dental tools and instruments.

He left the corporate sector and became a teaching fellow at CIS 303 in the South Bronx, specializing in middle-school math and social studies. It was during his tenure as a teacher that he created his foundation Cultural Connections Curriculum which took inner city kids in New York to various museums, correlating these trips with the classroom curriculums. After leaving CIS 303 Robert continued taking school children from Chinatown, Liberty High School and CIS 303 to the MET, Jewish Museum, MOMA and The Morgan Library and Museum, the latter at which he developed a program where students created their own paint from ground lapis, cochineal beetles, grass, chalk, and saffron and guided students to create illuminated manuscripts using gold leaf. He took students from The Music Advancement Program at The Juilliard School to the Museum of Television and Radio where the students created their own sound effects and selected classical works to accompany old radio and TV shows.

After moving with his family to Provincetown, MA, Robert quickly became involved in the public schools and was a member of the Cultural Council, Scholarship Committees, The Aids Memorial Committee and the Charter Revision Committee. He was very proud to be included on the Provincetown Art Association's annual Garden Tours where he shared his beautiful gardens at his home with walking visitors.

Robert and his family moved to Amherst, MA where they bought the Henry Hills House, renovated it and created a series of beautiful gardens which primarily focused on trees.

Robert is survived by his husband and 22 year partner, Tony Brackett, his teenage twins Margaret Speiser and Henry Speiser, family member Rosalie Gonzales and their dog Flomax.