Robert George "Bob" Jacobsen

1949 - 2025

Nampa and Caldwell - Robert George (Bob) Jacobsen, of Nampa and Caldwell, Idaho passed from this earth on Sunday, February 2, 2025.

A celebration of life will be held at 1:00 PM on Friday, February 21 at the Nampa First United Presbyterian Church, 400 Lake Lowell Avenue, with a reception immediately following at the Les Schwab Corral at the Idaho Center. Bob was born in Nampa, Idaho on January 7, 1949, to George and Eva Jacobsen. That date, though, would come to be in slight dispute; while his birthday was celebrated on the 7th throughout his life, and his driver's license listed the 7th, his passport indicated January 8. The final word came from his mother, who when asked about the date discrepancy said, "All I know is that he was born on a Friday." The date question was settled, though Bob always had to remember his passport listed the 8th when traveling internationally.

Bob grew up in Nampa and attended Roosevelt Elementary School as a boy. He graduated from Nampa High School in 1967, and chose to attend the University of Idaho, earning a bachelor's degree in forestry in 1971. It was at Idaho that he pledged the Tau Kappa Epsilon ("Teke") fraternity, where he met many of his closest, lifelong friends. Though that crowd wound up geographically dispersed after college and throughout their lives and careers, they always made a point to find chances to get together; these opportunities were one of his great enjoyments throughout life.

After graduating from the University of Idaho in 1971, Bob pursued a number of jobs but didn't gain traction in securing offers. Following a turndown, he asked why and was told that his father owned a business, and the company figured Bob would eventually leave to work in the family business. Perhaps taking that as advice, he did exactly that and went to work for Lloyd Lumber in 1972. That left the company with four "Bobs", and he soon became known as Jake to those in and around the company. Working with his father George, he spent time in sales and moved into daily management of the company in the mid-80s. It was at Lloyd's that he developed so many long-lasting and meaningful relationships with employees, customers, vendors, and others in the industry-relationships he cherished. He operated the business until opting to close it at the end of 2010.

Through Lloyd Lumber, Bob became active in industry groups, particularly with the Western Building Materials Association. He was a constant advocate and participant in WBMA whether it was education programs, conventions, or leadership. He was the Young Westerners Club President in 1983, WBMA President in 1992, and served as its National Director, a role that included annual visits to Washington, D.C. for ten years. Locally, he was a longtime member of Rotary, first as a member of Nampa Rotary Club and later with Canyon County Sunrise Rotary. He also served several years as a board member of the Nampa Development Corporation.

Close friend and fraternity brother Art Watkins had married Becky Meserole, an Emmett girl who happened to be childhood best friend with Patricia Ann Smith. Art and Becky introduced Bob and Pat, and for their first date they went shooting. Bob and Pat were married on April 6, 1974. They made their home in Nampa, initially on West Ada Avenue. Their first son, Scott, was born in 1976 and followed by a second son, Brent, in 1979. Shortly after Brent's birth they moved to a home south of Nampa where they raised their family and lived until 2002. That year they built their dream home north of Nampa, and being longtime Nampa residents, expected a new Nampa address. During construction they were told by their builder that the homesite would have a Caldwell address, to which Bob exclaimed, "What? I never thought that would happen!" Despite the ZIP code surprise, the site was the perfect spot to live out their years. Pat remains in that home to this day.

One of Bob & Pat's great loves was traveling with one another and with their friends. They toured Thailand and China in the 1990s, barely escaped Florida ahead of Hurricane Jeanne in 2004, sailed the Panama Canal in 1999 for their 25th wedding anniversary and had planned to do so again in 2025. Travels with friends included three trans-Atlantic cruises, a Caribbean cruise, and a South Africa safari. Fishing at Owyhee Reservoir in eastern Oregon was another of Bob's favorite pastimes, something he first started doing with his parents as a boy and continued throughout life with Pat and their sons. "We need to figure out when we're going to the Owyhee" was a standard springtime directive.

In 2002, Bob joined with friends Steve Tester, Dr. Dan Tiller, and Dan Wiebold to purchase a 130-acre farm along the Snake River on the outskirts of Adrian, Oregon with the hope of generating bird hunting opportunities while leasing out farming rights. The farm was a labor of love, though maybe a bit heavier on the labor than they anticipated. The farm yielded plenty of time to spend working and hunting with his two sons and Bob also logged plenty of quality farm time with his trusty companion Dutch, a wirehaired pointer who patrolled the farm with him from 2003 to 2017. The farm was sold in 2021.

He was preceded in death by his parents and his eldest sister, Nona Jacobsen. He is survived by Pat, his wife of 50 years; their two sons Scott and Brent, both of Nampa; and his sisters Janis Bruneel of Nampa and Linda Renn (Bill) of Chelan, Washington.

Interment will take place prior to the Celebration of Life, at Kohlerlawn Cemetery. Services will held at 1PM Friday, February 21, 2025 at the Nampa First Presbyterian Church, 400 Lake Lowell, Nampa. Pastor John Watts (retired) of the Nampa First United Methodist Church and Pastor Aaron Berkowitz of the Nampa First United Presbyterian Church will officiate. The family suggests memorial contributions to the Boise Rescue Mission or Mission Aviation Fellowship, charities to which Bob donated annually. Services are under the direction of Nampa Funeral Home, Yraguen Chapel. An online guest book and full obit is available at www.nampafuneralhome.com