Robert Arnold Enke

ENKE, Robert Arnold May 27, 1913-January 26, 2008

Bob Enke was a pleasant person with a good sense of humor, and a man of many talents and accomplishments. A native Portlander he graduated from Benson Polytechnic, and later from Oregon State University in the field of chemical engineering. He had interests in fishing, geology, music, drawing, fine woodworking and mushroom hunting. Bob distinguished himself with his innovative skills at The Iron Fireman Co., Boeing, and Crown-Zellerbach. While living in Baltimore and working for the U.S. Treasury Department in 1945, he was the only survivor of a lightning strike that took the lives of his wife and infant daughter. Bob and his young son returned to Portland, and in 1953 he met and married Inge, who was then a recent emigree from Germany. He started his own business of making commercial fishing hooks. He invented and fabricated the tools and equipment to make the best hooks in the industry, which were used by fishing companies worldwide.

Always having a wry smile, Bob was a great storyteller, and it was difficult sometimes to tell if he stretched the details a bit because he had indeed led such a remarkable life.

Bob died peacefully after a lengthy illness, and is survived by his wife, Inge; son, Robert Jr.; nephew, Claude Huddleston; niece, JulieAnn Edman; and sister-in-law, Bernice Enke.