Robert BEDFORD

BEDFORD, Robert Forrest of Charlottesville, VA, and St. Petersburg, FL, died peacefully at home on September 2, 2022. Born on October 6, 1942, he was the son of the late Nathaniel Forrest Bedford and Roberta Skinner Bedford. He was married in New Canaan, CT, on December 28, l963, to the love of his life, Faith Andrews Bedford. A graduate of the Lawrenceville School, where he was captain of the track team, Bob also was an alumnus of Princeton University and Cornell University Medical College. Bob completed both his residency and fellowship in Anesthesiology at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital, and served as a Maj. in the Army Medical Corps during the Vietnam War. Bob's career was spent as a Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology, mainly at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, which he referred to as his "academic home." During his career, Bob served as the Chair of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and as Director of the Division of Anesthesia at the Food and Drug Administration. He also taught Anesthesiology at the University of South Florida, and was the Chief of Anesthesia at the James A. Haley Veterans Administration Hospital in Tampa, FL. Bob authored over 200 scientific papers, abstracts and book chapters, and was an early pioneer in the field of anesthesiology for neurosurgery. He delighted in working with residents and medical students, and those teaching moments were the highlight of his professional career. He was an avid golfer and sailor, and his love of sunny days led to many happy hours sailing on Tampa Bay with friends from St. Petersburg Yacht Club. He and Faith spent a lifetime sharing their love of sailing, everywhere from Mountain Lakes, NJ, to Smith Mountain Lake, VA, to Long Island Sound, to the Gulf Coast of Florida. In later years, he volunteered at Recording for the Blind/Learning Ally, Habitat for Humanity, and sang in church choirs in both Charlottesville and St. Petersburg. Always eager to meet new people and support intercultural exchange, he and Faith welcomed many international students to their home and dinner table through The UVA International Center's "host family" program. They were enriched by the bonds they formed with those students and their parents. An enthusiastic life-long learner, Bob participated in numerous book clubs, taught and took countless courses at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at UVA , and was a longtime member of the Academy of Senior Professionals at Eckerd College (ASPEC) in Florida. Bob's greatest accomplishment was his family and the love he shared with them. He is survived by his beloved wife of 58 years, Faith Andrews Bedford, with whom he shared a love of art and architecture, travel, music, reading, skiing, and sailing, as well as a deep devotion to their children and grandchildren. Bob is also survived by and perennially proud of his three children, Drew Bedford, Eleanor Bedford, and Sarah Bedford; and son-in-law, Jay Scott. His grandchildren, Carter Bedford, Mason Bedford, Ford Scott, Alden Scott, Ben Maughan, Elisabeth Scott, and step-granddaughter Alice Brié, brought him boundless joy. Bob was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Dianne Marsden (Terry), of Mountain Lakes, NJ. Bob is also survived by two sisters, Bonnie Park (Pete), of Park City, UT, and Dorothy Bedford (Rush Taggart, III) of Valley Forge, PA; sister-in-law, Ellen Harris, of York, ME; brother-in-law, David Hoffman (Leslie Warner), of Acton, MA; many nieces and nephews; and scores of close friends who were like family. A memorial service will be held on October 10, 2022 at 11 am, at Westminster Church, 400 Rugby Rd., Charlottesville, VA. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Learning Ally or Westminster Church, Charlottesville.