Robert Mark Samet

A Lucky Man

Robert Mark Samet, age 98, passed away peacefully the evening of November 22nd in Baltimore, Maryland.

Known as Bob, Dad and Grampsy, he is survived by his two daughters, Wendy Hartman Samet (Andrew Lynn Hartman) and Nancie Samet Lundy (Jamie Lightstone), his grandchildren Megan Elizabeth Lundy (Rick Marlin), Abraham Samet Hartman, Emma Hartman Schirra (Nathan Schirra), and by his great granddaughter, Delancey Kay Marlin. The love of his life and wife of 73 years, Lois Picker Samet, died in January of this year.

A 'lucky man' is how Bob recounted his life. He was born in New York City to parents Helen Bomze Samet and Morris Samet who were able to remain economically comfortable even in the midst of the Great Depression. He describes his earliest memories as being of both the devastating poverty around him and of roads being built everywhere thanks to Roosevelt and the WPA. His parents were ardent Socialists and Jews who became Ethical Culturalists.

Bob was drafted into the army in June of 1945 and basic training took him from the sheltered, mostly Jewish world he had known an introduced him to men with life experiences vastly different from his own. He was sent to Frankfurt, Germany, and two weeks later the war in Europe was over. He was lucky never to have seen combat and to be 'rich' because he did not smoke when cigarettes were the currency of the day.

Upon returning to the States, he attended Utica College on the GI Bill and married Lois in January of 1952. Though not as rebellious as his parents had been, he was nonetheless deeply affected by his early experience of the Depression and his experiences in the Army. He made the decision to dedicate his professional life to improving the systems of government to make this country a more fair place for all. To this end he pursued his Masters' Degree in Public Administration at the Fells School of Government part of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. In his own words in a book he wrote for his grandchildren, 'When Grammy and I decided to get married, we very consciously recognized that we would not earn a lot of money, but that enjoying our work, raising our children well and trying to improve the lives of others was more important than making a great deal of money. In retrospect, I think we succeeded." His first professional break was a call in the middle of the night when the old guard of Philadelphia politics, about to be overthrown, fired all the city workers and Bob was called in to develop a Civil Service process literally overnight to so that critical personnel could be (re)hired and the city could function. Because of the success in essentially developing a civil service process to replace a corrupt system of patronage, Bob was soon recruited into an elite internship program in Albany, New York. This eventually led to his work in Pennsylvania State Government and a move to Harrisburg. There he worked first in the Highway Department creating their civil service process. A cocktail party turned out be a very lucky happenstance for this lucky man. There he met the remarkable Norman Lourie, who offered Bob a job as his assistant in what was then the State Welfare Department where he became Personnel Director and later took on many substantive roles.

Meaningful as he found his work, Bob's first priority was his family. He was home every night for family dinner, helped with homework, and bed time. His hobby was his house. He was a wonderful gardener and enjoyed woodworking, though that consisted more of buying tools and making stands for them than actually producing projects. Bob was a longtime member of a men's Discuss Club.

Though not traditionally religious, much of Bob and Lois's lives revolved around their involvement in the Jewish Community of Harrisburg where he served as Social Action Chair and Treasurer of the Temple Ohev Sholom and President of Jewish Family Service.

Music was a big part of Bob and Lois's life. They regularly attended the symphony, chamber music society, and the opera. They were wonderful dancers.

Bob retired when his first grandchild was born and he and Lois devoted the rest of their lives to being the most extraordinary of grandparents.

After 60+ years in their beloved home it became clear that Bob and Lois could no longer manage the house on Center Drive. In 2020, they moved to Baltimore to be near their daughter, Wendy. In another great stroke of luck, they were extremely fortunate to find a beautiful, sunny apartment at Springwell Senior Living. They moved in two weeks before the pandemic shut down the world. Wendy and Andy became central to their lives including fabulous Sunday breakfasts at their house cooked by Andy, exploring Baltimore's restaurant scene, car rides through beautiful Baltimore County, and sampling beers while discussing politics, books, articles and movies with his grandson, Abe.

Bob became great grandfather to his first great-grandchild, Delancey, in March. He was very lucky to be cared for by Briana and Sameria in the last months of his life. They became like family and we are forever grateful to them. They felt his passing a deeply as we did. To the very end Bob valued intellectual pursuits, read the NYTimes every day, loved his family and considered himself to be a very lucky man.

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 P.M. on Tuesday, November 25, 2025 in the Chapel of Temple Ohev Sholom, 2345 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110. Burial will be in Mount Moriah Cemetery, Harrisburg, PA.

Contributions in Bob's honor can be made to Temple Ohev Sholom Capital Campaign, 2345 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110,

Ohevsholom.org or 717-233-6459 (Amanda).