Robert William Troch

Robert William Troch III (1960 - 2024)

Renaissance man, co-founder of Younger Than Last Year, award-winning diorama builder, collector of superheroes and Kaiju statues, music lover, avid Bears fan, and so much more...

People have two things in common: the day we are born and the day we complete our physical cycle. What truly matters is how we fill the time between those two dates. Robert William Troch III of Brooklyn, N.Y., died on Sat., Oct. 19, at the age of 64. He filled his years with a passion for living in the moment, for being authentic, and for embodying honesty and integrity.

"Nowhere special? I always wanted to go there." - from Blazing Saddles

Robert was born on March 20, 1960, in Des Plaines, Ill., where his love of the Chicago Bears was indoctrinated in him from infancy. He graduated from Lake Forest Academy in 1978, and though he saw himself as a class clown, in reality, Robert excelled in sports, especially track, a passion that he maintained throughout his life. (He ran in two New York City marathons, including the one in 1995, the coldest race in history.)

At 20, Robert and his best friend, Matt Kampert, moved to Brooklyn; they never looked back.

"Midwestern suburbia was too small for Robert and me in every way imaginable," said Matt. "We were torn between leaving for New York City or Finland. When we came to the George Washington Bridge, we said, "Huh. So this is what Finland looks like."

"Won't you be my neighbor?" - Fred Rogers

For over 30 years, Robert owned and lived in a multi-family brownstone in Brooklyn. At a time when Brooklyn was still rough around the edges, Robert became a familiar face in the neighborhood. He invested in the community not just by maintaining his building, but also by hiring local workers for each project. While Robert often spoke with nostalgia about how the neighborhood has changed, he truly set an example for his fellow residents through kindness, a sense of humor and teamwork.

"Robert built our community through movie nights at his house, his annual Brooklyn Halloween Show, and his project, Younger Than Last Year, touching countless lives," recalled Dan Long, a longtime friend and neighbor. "His superpower? An uncanny ability to see the best in others and ignite their sense of wonder and joy."

"Exercise is king. Nutrition is queen. Put them together and you have a kingdom." - Jack LaLanne

Robert always had faith in himself, his family, his friends and most important, in his ability. With a varied background in strength and conditioning, flexibility, nutrition and yoga, over the years he taught at the Park Slope Academy of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, the New York Road Runners Club and The New York Times. He was certified as a level 1 USA track and field coach, a Russian kettlebell instructor, an Intrafitt coach, a NASM integrated flexibility practitioner and an Ashtanga yoga teacher.

In 2016, Robert co-founded Younger Than Last Year, a Brooklyn fitness studio. At YTLA, he believed in helping students make small changes in exercise, nutrition and mindset in order to live longer, healthier lives. The mission was to strive for progress, not perfection.

"Though Robert trained real athletes like the kind of people who did triathlons, he was also the quiet champion of the contrarian - the person who bought a gym membership they never used," said Mason Wickham, a YTLY mainstay. "Though he had an encyclopedic knowledge of the body and the history of human movement, he was not a high priest of wellness or a fitness guru. Robert embraced the ambivalence some of us felt about exercise and sort of tricked us into getting in shape."

"It's Alive... It's Alive!" - Dr. Frankenstein

Robert wore his love for old horror, Kaiju, sci-fi, and other genre movies and TV shows on his proverbial sleeve - and on many all-too-real T-shirts. From 2005 to 2015, he co-founded and produced the Brooklyn Halloween Show at his brownstone and garage/studio space on Waverly Avenue, to the delight of thousands of spectators during its 10-year run. With a twinkle in his eye, Robert and his troupe created stage presentations that combined WWW-style combat with over-the-top decapitations and slapstick humor.

"It was the Halloween show your older sibling snuck you into and got in trouble for doing so when you were little," said good friend and longtime collaborator Eric Hamilton. "A little naughty, but with a good heart... just like Robert."

Robert's love for these things was also at the heart of his passion projects: elaborate dioramas built from model kits and found objects, bringing his reimagined scenes of Frankenstein's lab or epic Kaiju battles, to life. He welcomed others to join him in creating these diorama scenes, later showcasing them at national model shows and competitions. Meeting others who shared his passion gave him immense joy, as did exchanging ideas and sharing his vast knowledge of model kits, the creators or companies behind them, and the hobbyists - past and present - who made builds from the kits. Robert's enthusiasm was infectious and he always encouraged the hobby to grow and evolve in positive, creative ways.

"If there's anything we could learn from him is to do what we love...don't just dream about it, make it happen," wrote Eric, who also later helped him with several diorama builds. "He firmly believed to never hesitate, start now. Don't wait (he never did)."

"Like a bird on the wire, like a drunk in a midnight choir, I have tried in my way to be free." - Leonard Cohen

Robert is survived by his wife, Grace Y. Wong; his daughter, Georgia Troch; his son-in-law, Jacob Drab; his mother, Charlene Troch; his sister, Kelly (Troch) Ogden and her husband, Chris; his brother, Brian Troch, and his wife, Jenny; and many other loving relatives, friends and neighbors. He was preceded in death by his father, Robert William Troch Jr.

In everything he did, Robert embraced it with joy, passion and honesty. As he specifically requested, an Irish wake is planned for March 2025.

Growing up with cats, dogs and parakeets, Robert had a lifelong belief that all animals hold a place in our ecosystem - even cockroaches and pigeons. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the North Shore Animal League, where he and his family rescued two dogs. Robert was also a passionate advocate for organ donation, and because of his generous gift, new life has begun for many more people. In keeping with Robert's legacy, please consider registering as an organ donor to bring hope and a future to others.