Robert Peters

Robert Peters ObituaryTo my Dearest Bob:
You served as a beacon of hope in a time of uncertainty in my family's life. My prayers were answered when God graciously brought you into mine. I pray that God's perpetual light will illuminate your path, leading you to an eternal life you so rightly deserve and desired.
Bob passed away peacefully. He wanted to go home. Shortly after he thoroughly enjoyed his last grape popsicle he joined his family in the Kingdom of God. It happened so fast. Anyone who knew Bob knew he was a man set in his ways. A man who knew what he wanted. He was a cantankerous, bull-headed, kind hearted man. One moment he would agree to not do something anymore, and the next moment you could find him doing exactly what he said he wouldn't. Responding "I Know, I know." His kind soul would prevail. He would eventually apologize for any misbehavior or outbursts he had. Robert would be proud of himself when he was able to control his impulses. Always seeking to please, always looking for approval.
My family and Robert crossed paths over 34 years ago. We moved into one of the cabins on the 183 grounds in Manitou Springs. My children were young, Adam 4 and Audra 1. 183 was a paradise for children. At my appointment to see the cabin I stood in a line to tour it. The woman touring before me said she first needed to speak to her husband. When the land lord approached me, I noted there were people in line before me. I didn't know them at the time, but there stood Bob, Norm, Alfie, Sherry and others waiting to find out who might be moving in. I learned they were Cheyenne Village clients and lived in the group homes on grounds. We had always wanted to live in Manitou Springs so I secured the cabin with a deposit, beginning our life journey with Bob and Cheyenne Village.
At 183 you could count on Norm and Bob to stop by for a morning cup of coffee with Richard. A routine that Robert continued to do at our host home; he would knock on Richard's door each morning entering with a "Hi Richard" and they caught up on the weather and news.
At 183 you would see Robert pushing his wheelbarrow around the grounds supervising projects that Robert felt needed supervision. At our home, if the gas or electric companies had projects or we needed the driveway plowed or repaired, Bob would be there overseeing their labors, making friends with the workers.
I was amazed at Bob's physical fitness and endurance. At the age of 82 he was still taking daily walks, but not as far, sweeping our driveway of snow, but not for as long, raking needles and tire tracks, and hauling sand if it wasn't too cold. Boy could he haul some sand. These were his favorite past-times. He loved to be outdoors doing his chores, or "jobs" as he would call them. His stamina was unbelievable. There were times I would have to say "Bob, no more sand around the house!" So Bob would then haul wheelbarrows full of sand back to the dry creek bed.
It was important to Robert to feel needed and useful. Bob would assign himself his own work chores. It became obvious it was important to Bob to keep busy to pass the time. He loved to wash my car, washing it nearly every time we came home. He looked forward to trash day. Gathering the trash, (and sometimes gathering "NOT" trash) he would take it down to our front gate. He waited and watched for the trash truck then brought the empty container back up. He would get upset if someone did his job. But if you explained it was because there was too much snow, or the driveway was washed out, he would say "Thanks, I get the day off". He loved cooking his own breakfast on his own schedule. He was happiest when he could be outdoors, doing what he wanted, eating WHAT he wanted, WHEN he wanted.
About 15 years ago Robert moved into our home in Woodland Park. I was told he ate like a bird, yet in reality, homemade comfort foods were foods he liked. He had a substantial appetite. We realized that my habit of cooking excess food for leftovers and Robert's mentality of needing to finish what was on the table, quickly put 70 lbs on Bob in just a few months. His food pallet expanded along with his waistline. He learned he really did like "Chinese food", something he said he hated when he first moved in. Bob could consume a whole box of drumstick-ice-cream cones in a day. He would challenge my dad to see who could eat more ice cream in a sitting. My dad would normally win. Portion control and moderation became our goals for 15 years.
Robert thrived in the host home setting. He was a much happier man. He was no longer worried about being told he couldn't do the outdoor chores he enjoyed. "Safety" was what we discussed. At 183 we would find Bob's wheelbarrow thrown in the dumpster. He would get mad that he was told "No, you can't do that". The maintenance crew knew the routine and would pull the wheelbarrow out of the trash and store it until Robert would calm down and wanted it back. Bob just wanted to be allowed to complete his self-imposed chores he enjoyed doing. He really "needed" to stay busy to pass the time. Growing up in Minnesota, Robert was assigned snow removal duties. Before he threw his pictures away we got from Rose, his sister-in-law, we had pictures of Bob with his shovel in hand, his dog at his side, in what looked like many feet of snow. We can get our fair share of snow here in Colorado and we would have tell him there was too much snow and we would need to hire a front loader.
Robert quickly became a part of our family. We traveled to my son's boot camp graduation, he attended family functions, holidays, birthdays, weddings, and funerals. He traveled with me to visit my daughter in college. Robert loved my parents, he looked forward to visiting them. He would assign himself to clean their back patio for them when we visited. He liked visiting my siblings and their families in Kansas, yet he was quick to let them know when we would be leaving. He conducted a count down until the time to leave occurred. He enjoyed visitors at our house but he would immediately want to know when they were leaving and kept an eye on the clock. He appreciated that our friends would include him in activities, he felt welcomed to join. Robert glowed when he would say he was part of our family. It was important to him to feel included.
Robert was a storyteller and not always were his stories true. He enjoyed elaborating or embellishing many a story. He could tell some good ones. He could laugh at himself, but didn't like others to laugh "at" him. He was was OK with people laughing "with" him, sometimes a fine line for Bob. He enjoyed watching movies, shopping and taking walks together. "Girls, girls, girls, girls" were constantly on his mind. I remember one time he had accidentally purchased one of the Playboy channels with my TV remote. It took me several months to notice my bill went up and that the "girls, girls, girls" channel he wanted me to turn on was this Playboy channel. I quickly restricted program purchases from my TV remote.
For some reason Bob would call my daughter Audra, "Rhonda". After many years, Audra didn't want to correct him, so Audra was "Rhonda" to Bob. Audra helped me with Bob on occasion as a step in job coach, taking him to occasional appointments, or hanging out with him if I had to run an errand. I appreciated her help and Bob liked her. Although he did admit she was more strict than I was.
To hear Robert make up stories about himself that replicated my son's life was a hoot. At some point Bob too had played high school football, had 3 kids, and worked for an electric company. Robert would inquire about my grand-kids, routinely asking "are they coming over?" "are you babysitting?" "did they have a ballgame?" and of course, "how long are they staying?" After every visitor he would ask "How did I do, did I do good?". If Robert called you "Girl" you knew he was excited about what he was going to say, and was seeking a compliment. "Girl did you see that driveway, what did you think? "Girl did you see I cleared the cement in the creek?" " Girl did you see your car, I washed it for you." "Girl you wouldn't have such a good host home guy if you had someone else." It was comical hearing him hitting on his new female doctor, his newest nurse, his dentist assistant, his blood drawer, or any new woman he encountered. He was always on the hunt for a girlfriend. He would ask "are you married?" "Would you like to be my girlfriend?" Most girls, graciously turned him down, but he still loved to ask and joke around.
Robert was an animal lover. He enjoyed spotting bears, deer, wild turkey, bobcats, coyotes, occasionally elk, and other wildlife on the property. He knew to stay near the house during mountain lion and bear sightings. He always let you know if he saw one roaming around.
Robert loved every one of our pets, and they loved him. Not just for the food he shared with them, but for the companionship. They loved being with him. If he was outside, they were outside. If he went for a walk, they went on a walk. If he sat in the sunshine enjoying the beautiful day they were there beside him. Einstein and Juno will probably loose some weight with Bob gone. They keep looking for him.
Robert had such a kind heart that when my daughter in law's and grandkid's dog Biscuit passed away, laying at his feet while they were enjoying the sunshine outside, Robert covered her with a blanket and wept. It is amazing to realize that he even knew our first family dog - Adolph, because we had Adolph at the 183 cabin. He knew and loved them all, Bobby Girl, Joey Boy, kitty kitty, Binx, Audra's several cats, Murdoch, Dutton, and our newest Klova.
Robert was a simple man needing few possessions. A one-set-of-clothes kind of guy. When he moved into our home he had all his personal belongings in a trash bag. This was how he traveled. Eventually he asked me if he could get a duffel bag like mine and used it for the first time heading to my dad's services. From then on, he gave up his trash bag suitcase.
Whenever I would go shopping and come home with more "clothes" or "stuff" Robert would say "MORE clothes?" Causing us to then banter on how many pieces of clothing or how much "stuff" a person really needed. Robert would always notice if I wore different shoes or a new top. You couldn't get anything past Bob. It would trigger him to remind me he only wanted limited clothes, just the clothes on his back. I would remind him h needed an extra set so when he does his laundry Robert had good taste in clothes. When given an option he would choose the higher quality made clothes. He could find great buys at his favorite place to shop, Goodwill on Senior-Day. He would then wear his new garments everyday, week in week out until they too needed to be replaced.
Robert was always a people pleaser. He learned young to put away what he got out, never leaving anything laying around. Bob's prize possessions were his wheelbarrow, his rake, his shovel, and his broom. He cleaned his wheelbarrow after every use and painted it often. Always blue. He always wanted to paint my dad's old rusty wheelbarrow we had, we never did.
Up to the day Robert passed away he was still washing my car, sweeping snow, raking pine needles and sand, and cooking his own breakfast. He was so proud of himself when he learned to make his own French toast. He often would ask how to make something he liked a lot so he could make it for himself.
Even though Robert struggled to read, he could tell you the state name of the car tags around us. Our area having many tourists he saw a lot of different tags. Whether they were common tags, special tags or tags newly designed by the states, more times than not he would be able to tell you what state. I was always in awe of how he could do this.
Robert had many jobs in his life. The ones he talked about the most was working with Chef Ziggy at the Briarhurst in Manitou Springs, his litter getter job at the Air Force Academy, and his Burger King job he had stayed at the longest, being a dining room custodian. He had a job coach to keep him focused and to help talk him through whatever might have made him mad. Sometimes he would come home with tips.
Robert was a special guy a diamond in the rough, a pearl in the field. Understanding Bob's basic needs and wants was important and if he was given the opportunity to achieve these "wants" he was happy and would do anything for you. Being able to let him do his chores helped Bob become a changed man. Happier and loving life.
Robert touched so many people's lives. I am sure he's touched all of you here somehow. I want to thank you all for celebrating Bob's life with us. I feel him smiling upon us and know he is happy, pain free, with no more worries. I believe he is now disability free in the kingdom of heaven. Something he always wanted. Robert will be remembered for the big hearted person he was. Bob will always be loved, he is a part of our family forever. If anyone deserves to enjoy the kingdom of God - Robert does. God Bless you Robert, rest in peace, enjoy your eternal life
Love your family - The Knolls.
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To my Dearest Bob:
You served as a beacon of hope in a time of uncertainty in my family's life. My prayers were answered when God graciously brought you into mine. I pray that God's perpetual light will illuminate your path, leading you to an eternal life you so rightly deserve and desired.
Bob passed away peac