Frank Robert "Bob" Shellenberger

1928 - 2019

Frank Robert "Bob" Shellenberger February 2, 1928 - October 26, 2019 Frank Robert "Bob" Shellenberger, husband of Alice (Twede) Shellenberger, died peacefully at the age of 91 in Stockton on Saturday, October 26, 2019. Born in Antioch, CA on a rainy Groundhog Day in 1928, he was the son of the late Frank R. Shellenberger and Idalyne Taylor Shellenberger. In his own words, "nothing much happened" between that day he was born and when he graduated from Liberty Union High School in Brentwood, CA. (Though in that time, he made lifelong friends with whom he regularly visited for lunch until just a few months ago, played trombone in the band, enjoyed his role of bench warmer tackle on the football team, and learned to fly Piper Cubs.) Bob joined the Navy at the end of WWII, attained the high rank of Seaman First Class, and experienced an immensely formative period of his life stationed around the Great Lakes, IL and Lakehurst, NJ. It was through his Navy service that he discovered his excitement for travel, a fascination with aerology, and the opportunity to indulge his passion for music, theatre, and writing in his role of arts critic for the base newspaper. Following his self-proclaimed "heroic sea duty," Bob returned to CA to attend San Jose State University where he "acquired a red-headed wife, Alice 'Red' Twede, a daughter, Gail "George", a 1938 Chevy, and a degree in social science with minors in history and drama." A son, Rob "Buckshot", followed shortly thereafter. After college, Bob and Alice moved to Stockton, where he enjoyed a fulfilling career including work as a Right-of-Way Agent, Negotiator and Appraiser for the Division of Highways, an Appraiser for State Savings and Loan, and as an Independent Real Estate Appraiser with his own business. In 1971, Bob won a "squeaker" of an election to become the Assessor of San Joaquin County, a position he held for six terms until his retirement in 1995. He described his time as county assessor as "the best years I could have ever imagined." He instituted revolutionary changes in the Assessor's office to "automate" and computerize and to provide individual computer workstations for each staff member - systems that remained partly in place until just two years ago. Bob lectured about real estate appraisal at San Joaquin Delta College and U.C. Davis, as well as U.C. Extension programs. He made many friends in San Joaquin County government and the merchant, banking and legal community of Stockton during a more vibrant era of the city's downtown. Bob was a firm believer in everyone having a "hometown," and his roots in Stockton ran deep. History - particularly local history - was a lifelong avocation and he loved learning about "the story of the ordinary people who did extraordinary things without realizing it." Affiliations included the United Way, AFS Foreign Student Exchange Program, Rotary Club of North Stockton (Past President and an active senior member), the San Joaquin Historical Society (Past President, editor, Golden Acorn Award), the Stockton Corral of Westerners International (Past Sheriff, Mike Canlis Award), Antioch Historical Society (Life Member), the Oregon-California Trails Association, East Contra Costa County Historical Society (Life Member), and the California Historical Society (Bob always claimed paying dues was his major contribution to history). In downtown Stockton, he was a regular at the informal but formally named "Weber Point Coffee Club," the Yosemite Club, and as a visiting Rotarian at the Stockton Rotary Club. He traveled regularly to his original hometown of Brentwood to lunch with his friends from Liberty Union High. An irrepressible "rut nut," he dragged his tolerant wife, Alice, throughout the American West to examine wagon ruts, rusted wagon parts and cow pies. A quiet scholar, Bob spent many happy hours smoking his pipe in his home office while reading, researching and writing about local history, genealogy, the Oregon-California Trail, theology and the arts. He loved finding and reading diary accounts documenting the Oregon-California Trail. His literary accomplishments include contributions to a book about the Bob Hope (Fox) Theater in Stockton, numerous contributions to The San Joaquin Historian, News and Notes of the San Joaquin Historical Society and The Far Westerner and as author of Wagons West, a series of vignettes describing the California Trail in 1848. The book later served as inspiration for the musical "Wagons Ho!" performed at the Stockton Civic Theater. Bob and Alice, the love of his life, enjoyed a marriage that spanned 69 years and seven continents. Together, they raised two children, crisscrossed the globe, cruised the Delta in their houseboat, "The Tule Turtle", as members of the San Joaquin Delta Squadron of the United States Power Squadrons, and they hosted raucous get- togethers with their dance club called the "Stardusters", which eventually morphed into the "Fun Seekers" when aging hearts and hip joints no longer allowed dancing. They gathered friends and family at their cabin in Arnold "Little Wolf" for weekends and Thanksgivings, enjoyed many merry Little Christmas Eves with, their daughter Gail and her family, played countless hands of bridge and danced in the kitchen. Bob will be remembered as a cheerful, gregarious, affectionate man, a generous bestower of nicknames and a passionate supporter of the arts with a remarkably accurate ear for the note "E flat." He loved his hometown, his family, his work, and his place in history. He enjoyed wood carving, his Macintosh computer, a long succession of family dogs, Maureen O'Hara, big band music and his home weather station. He will be sadly missed by his family and many friends. He was preceded in death by his son, Rob; brother, Bill and sister, Jewel. He is survived by his wife, Alice "Red"; daughter, Gail (Jay) Hislop; granddaughters, Jenny Hislop (Mel McLaurin) and Kristen Hislop and great-granddaughter, Freyja McLaurin. A celebration of life luncheon will be held on November 25th at the Waterloo Gun and Bocce Club from 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the San Joaquin Historical Society Endowment Fund or the Stockton Symphony Endowment.