Robert Ortalda

Robert A. Ortalda
March 21, 1924 to June 23, 2021
Robert A. Ortalda, decorated veteran of World War II, Cal graduate, geologist, loving husband, adored father, grandfather and great-grandfather, died peacefully in his sleep June 23, 2021 at his home in Tiburon, California. He was 97.
Robert enlisted in the U.S. Army after Pearl Harbor and was assigned to Officer Candidates School until after D-Day, when he and his OCS colleagues were shipped off to the European theater. He participated in the Battle of the Bulge, where he earned a Bronze Star for valor and three Purple Hearts.
Ortalda earned his Masters degree in Geology from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1948. He met his future wife, Jeanne Marie Georges, a nurse, on a blind date. The couple were married within 6 months and made their first home in Berkeley. Their marriage lasted 73 years.
Robert was hired as an exploration geologist by Standard Oil of California (Chevron), where he spent his entire career, with postings in Ojai, Salinas, Bakersfield, Anchorage, and San Francisco, as well as Portugal, where he served as Managing Director for the company's exploration efforts in Portugal during a time of political turbulence in the country. Upon his retirement from Chevron, he became a consulting geologist for several years.
In his leisure time, he and Jeanne traveled extensively. He was an accomplished painter and photographer, a golfer, a creative cook and gardener, a woodworker, and an avid reader, as well as a great humorist and storyteller. He seemed to know how to do everything and on camping and hiking trips displayed his knowledge of flora and fauna, history, geography, and, of course, rocks. In later years, he took great pride in his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Robert is survived by his wife Jeanne, son Robert Jr. (Mary), daughter Claire (Floyd), grandchildren Michelle WolfKlain (Tyler) and Michael (Marie), two great-granddaughters, Evye and Mira, and two great-grandsons, Owen and Wesley.