Robert S. Linden

Robert S. Linden of Asheville, NC died June 9th at age 74. He had retired from a distinguished career as an executive and consultant in the fossil-fuel industry, following in the footsteps of his father, an industry leader.

Bob was born in Chicago, IL, the only son of Henry R. and Dorothy J. Linden, and grew up on a leafy street in nearby suburban Hinsdale. He attended Hinsdale High School, was an excellent student, and developed an interest in small-group jazz as a tenor saxophonist. He enjoyed camping with his local Boy Scout troop and reading superhero comic books, especially those few about Conan the Barbarian. Two of his best friends self-identified as Whale Man and his older brother, Plastic Man.

Bob first attended Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin, where he majored in philosophy, made enduring friendships, and graduated summa cum laude in 1974. He was deeply involved in creative fiction classes run by novelist Mark Dintenfass, where he produced dark, comic, linguistically and conceptually rich short stories that might be described as anti-suburban. His comments in the writing class were notoriously funny, mordant, self-deprecating, and competitive. He had a black cat he named Motorhead for its purr and friends affectionally labeled Flash and Squamous Worm. He met his wife Nancy at Lawrence's Conservatory of Music, comically vying for her attention while she was practicing her flute.

After several years wondering how to apply an undergraduate degree in philosophy to a life beyond academia, Bob attended the University of Maryland, earning a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, graduating magna cum laude in 1982. This completed a portfolio of academic achievement that served him the rest of his career.

Bob started in the natural gas industry with Transco in Houston, where he liaised with gas suppliers and planned major new pipelines to underserved areas, including parts of Latin America. One high-risk trip took him to Caracas, Venezuela, during the outbreak of a civil war. To escape, he was forced to walk nearly 20 miles to Simón Bolívar International Airport down the highway median, suitcase in hand, as military vehicles roared by. Eventually he joined the advisory firm Siemens, based in Washington, DC, as a senior energy consultant. He presented to corporate clients in many of the world's business centers, including New York City, London, Kiev, Singapore, and Moscow, sharing a range of ideas from new energy investment opportunities to energy mergers, acquisitions, and divestments.

For relaxation, Bob embarked on canoe-camping explorations of rivers and lakes in Maine, Maryland, Wisconsin, Quebec, and notably a perilous trip down a rain-swollen Buffalo River in the Ozarks, which had suddenly risen above flood stage. He customized a Jeep with an eardrum-punishing sound system; enjoyed scuba diving in the Leeward Antilles; and painstakingly remodeled a DC rowhouse and their Asheville home embellished with his own designs.

Bob and his wife Nancy retired to Asheville in 2018 to escape living in the flight path of White House helicopters and to savor the quiet and peace of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Together, they made a mountainside house built a century ago in western North Carolina their home. Bob enjoyed lengthy interludes observing the wildlife, the weather, and the stars from the home's spacious veranda, always accompanied by Mr. Wiggly, a human-sized wire rabbit and good friend.

Bob brought the gift of wit to any situation-startling, often absurd, misanthropic, but somehow always warm, underscored by his rapid-fire chortle. His hunger for knowledge was open and capacious, and his love for those he knew beyond measure.

Bob is survived by his wife Nancy, his sister Debra, his niece Heather, his godson Sean, and Sean's children-Rosie and Holden.

Those desiring to make a memorial contribution in Bob's honor are encouraged to consider donating to MANNA Food Bank (https://mannafoodbank.org/) or World Central Kitchen (https://www.worldcentralkitchen.org/donate).