Robert D. Haller

HALLER, Robert D. Robert D. HaIler, 69, died peacefully in his home in Glastonbury on Friday, (April 21, 2006) after a brief battle with cancer. He was born June 28, 1936, in Erie, PA to the late Robert and Harriet Haller. He graduated magna cum laude from Yale in 1958. There he began a life long love affair with Yale football as team manager. He joined Travelers Insurance Companies in 1958, retiring in 1994 as Vice President in charge of Corporate Accounts and President of the Northeast Home Office. It was then that he was able to devote himself fully to volunteer work and philanthropy. He was a longtime member of Rotary Club of Hartford, where he was honored as a Paul Harris Fellow. He has been a life long enthusiastic member of the Yale Club of Hartford, where he was currently serving on the Board of Directors and had been President in the early 1990s. During his tenure, in 1992, he received the Nathan Hale Award. He enjoyed children, reading for many years to kindergarten classes at the Thurman Milner School in Hartford. He took up the cause of parental empowerment, serving as chairman of the Parent Leadership Training Institute, a program under the auspices of the Commission on Children and receiving a special citation in 2002 from the State of Connecticut commending him for his work with this organization. At the time of his death he was serving on the Steering Committee of the Catalyst Endowment Fund, a program of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, was a Corporator of the Hartford Seminary and was Chairman of the Salvation Army Advisory Board of Directors, an organization whose services to those in need he has long admired. He and his family have been members of the Congregational Church in South Glastonbury since moving to town in 1968, serving in various leadership capacities on all church boards and committees. Throughout his life, family was his priority. He was known and loved for his playful sense of humor and ability to enjoy the simple things in life. He is survived by Wendy (MacKenzie) beloved wife of 43 years; a daughter and son-in-law, Julie and G. Ames Prentiss of Andover, MA, and their two children, Campbell and Kate Prentiss; a son, David and his fiancee Heidi Schwenzer of Glastonbury and Arlington, MA. He also leaves behind his (step) mother, Betty Haller of Erie, PA; a beloved sister and brother-in-law, Susan and Ron Mangold of Pittsburgh, PA and Naples, FL; his niece, Elizabeth Morrison of Arlington, MA; and nephew and wife, Jeff Morrison and Dierdre McDonough of Ipswich, MA. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 29 at 11 a.m. at the Congregational Church in South Glastonbury. There will be calling hours on Friday, April 28, from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. at the Mulryan Funeral Home, 725 Hebron Ave., Glastonbury. Contributions in his honor may be made to The Salvation Army of Greater Hartford, 855 Asylum Ave., Hartford CT 06105 or Hospice and Palliative Care, 111 Founders Plaza, East Hartford CT 06108.