Robert Dale Minsch

Robert Dale (Bob) Minsch, 87, passed away on Thursday February 8, 2024 in Tavares, FL. Bob was born on March 17, 1936 in Newton, Kansas, in the Bethel Deaconess Hospital to Anna Flaming Minsch and Dietrich H. Minsch, both of whom predeceased him early in Bob's life. Bob married Patricia Mae Hix in Seattle,WA on December 23, 1958. Patricia predeceased Bob on March 20, 2021. Their daughters, Tricia Ann Minsch, age 7, and Deborah Lynn Kofmehl, age 55, predeceased both Patricia and Bob. Bob's two sisters, Jean Martini and Mae Bernard, also predeceased him.
Survivors include his daughter, Rebecca Kathleen Boyce and three grandsons: Luke, Jake, and Mitch (Autumn), and great grandsons Clyde and Hank, all of the Central Florida area.
Bob was a 1954 graduate of Newton High School and in June, 1954 Bob joined the local resident engineer's office of the Kansas Highway Department when construction first began on the "Newton Bypass" which is now part of I-135. This began a 45 year career in highway design and construction. He moved to Seattle, WA in October, 1957 and served 25 years with WSDOT in the Seattle and Tumwater Districts and in Olympia Headquarters before moving into private practice with various consulting engineering firms. He became a licensed professional civil engineer in 1967 and worked on numerous highway, interchange, and bridge design and construction projects in Kansas, Washington, Oregon, Texas and Florida. He retired in Orlando, FL on January 31, 2000 as Senior Professional Associate and Vice President of HDR Engineering, with corporate offices in Omaha, NE. During the first several years after retirement, he and his wife Patricia and their Maltese, "Mikey", travelled in their 'RV" over 100,000 miles and visited each of the "original 48" and Canada, enjoying the beauty and diversity of this country and its residents.
Bob was drafted into the U.S. Army in October, 1958, served on active duty 24 months, with 18 months in Frankfurt, Germany, and was honorably discharged in September, 1960; then continued service in the active and inactive reserves until September, 1964.
Interment will be in the family plot at Sunset Hills Memorial Park, Bellevue, WA. The family requests that any remembrances be directed to the Seattle Children's Hospital, 4800 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105 in memory of Tricia Ann Minsch