Robert D. Schrock Jr.

1938 - 2025

Robert D. Schrock Jr.

August 6, 1938 - August 11, 2025

Cary, North Carolina - Robert D. Schrock, Jr., MD, age 87, passed away on August 11, 2025. He was born on August 6, 1938 in Omaha Nebraska, the only son of the late Robert D. Schrock, Sr., MD, and Elizabeth Winslow Wetherbee Schrock. Bob is an alumnus of Princeton University and Cornell University Medical College. After marrying Carolyn Gorthy three days before graduating from medical school, he and his new bride moved to Seattle, WA where he completed his residency at King County Hospital (Harborview). He then served from 1970-1972 as a Major in the Army Medical Corps in Fort Knox, Kentucky. He and his young family moved to Rochester, NY in 1972 where he practiced orthopaedic surgery for 32 years. He founded Greater Rochester Orthopaedics in the mid-80s and was a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Orthopaedics at the University of Rochester.He also served as president of the Rochester Academy of Medicine. He was honored with an Award of Merit and the Genesee Valley chapter of the Arthritis foundation, for which he received a National Volunteer Award. After retirement in 2004, Bob and Carolyn moved to Chapel Hill, NC while spending summers at their beloved cottage in Charlevoix, Michigan.He often said that his most satisfying position in life during retirement was supporting Carolyn's career as a plein air pastel artist, traveling with her to workshops in Taos and Sante Fe, NM, the Boston area, the Loire and Rhone valleys of France, the Blue Ridge of Virginia and Buck's County Pennsylvania. As she painted he would explore, hike and pursue his passion of photography. Over his lifetime he enjoyed tennis, hiking,sailing and singing. He was generous with his time, teaching young sailors the ropes on Lake Charlevoix for many years after retirement. Bob loved music. Starting with the Glee Club at Princeton, Bob enthusiastically sang in many choirs, including those that Carolyn directed during their years in Rochester. Bob's retirement was complicated by a diagnosis of Mantle Cell Lymphoma in early 2007, a lymphoma that remains a largely incurable disease. But Bob 'rode the wave' of scientific discovery, even with recurrences in 2012, 2014 and 2022. His constant emphasis on exercise - walking every day, even during hospitalizations - made him a candidate for an autologous stem cell transplant in 2015 and CAR-T cell infusion in 2023 when most individuals would not have qualified for such treatments at his age.His joy of life, kindness to others, and infectious optimism was felt by everyone who knew him, patients, family, friends and strangers alike. Every conversation you had with him made you feel like you were the most important person in the room. His empathy and generosity were a core part of his fabric and guided his every action and opinion.He and Carolyn attended most every soccer game, tennis match, softball game and diving meet of their children with enthusiasm. He never missed an opportunity to tell his children and grandchildren how proud he was of them.Thank you to all who have reached out to offer words of condolence. Of the many quotes we cherish, these are some of the most poignant, "Always positive. Always smiling. He knew how to put others before himself." "To know him was to love him…" "His spirit will Soar like an eagle." "He left a legacy of strength and grace that will inspire many, forever." "Bob has been a guiding light both in Med School and in practice and was highly respected as a surgeon and a human being." He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Carolyn Gorthy Schrock, two children, Robert Schrock III and his wife, Marijke, Suzanne Schrock-Kelley and her husband Jim, and four grandchildren, Bryan Schrock, Kathryn Kelley, Connor Kelley and Stephen Schrock. Memorial services are being planned. In lieu of flowers, please consider a tribute donation in Bob's name to the Little Traverse Conservancy organization: https://landtrust.org/