Robert Bishop

Robert (“Bob”) Leslie Bishop passed away on July 12, 2018, after a 7.5 year battle with metastatic prostate cancer with his loving wife, Rita, and devoted daughters Leslie and Allyson, by his side.

Bob was born in Los Angeles, California on May 11, 1942 to Maude and Francis Bishop. He had one younger brother, Bill. In the 1950s, the family moved to a Hollywood Hills home where they created wonderful memories. They were members of the Bel Air Bay Club where Bob enjoyed sneaking into their cabana to sleep on summer nights so he could surf at first light.

Bob attended University of Redlands, graduating in 1963. At Redlands, he met his first wife and mother of his daughters, Darlene Linton, and joined Pi Chi fraternity where he made many lifelong friends. From 1986 to 1995, Bob was honored to serve on the university’s Board of Trustees.

After Redlands, Bob served in the Air Force Reserves for six years. He started his professional career at Security Bank before moving on to sales at IBM. In 1970, Bob joined Itel where he ran a division that purchased large computer systems and leased them to major corporate users. In 1979, he was part of a small group that bought their division from Itel and launched their own company, TXL, which arranged lease financing on transportation and other large equipment. In 1989, they sold TXL to Genstar.

In 1982, Bob married the love of his life, Rita Anderson.  They wed in San Francisco and lived for many happy years in Marin County, California. With frequent visits to Rita’s hometown of Kalispell, Bob quickly fell in love with Montana and the community of Whitefish.  He said when he retired he wanted a place there. So in 1990, they built a home on Whitefish Lake. Bob happily jumped into all the activities the lake could offer and embraced all the new adventures winter could provide for a California guy.  Bob was gregarious and loved to connect. He wanted to be a part of this new community, so he reached out-- literally.  Early on he was always shaking hands and introducing himself.  People thought he was running for mayor!

In 1995, Bob and Rita bought a second home in Scottsdale, Arizona. Bob now had two beautiful places to “play” and enjoy the activities he came to love -- golfing, skiing, snowmobiling, hiking (especially in Glacier National Park), and life on the lake. Bob and Rita traveled the world together but always felt a special connection to the island of Maui where they returned many times and renewed their wedding vows on their 25th anniversary surrounded by their daughters, sons-in-law, and grandsons.

Bob was a true “people person” –leaving a lasting impression on all who crossed his path. He was a consummate host, a great storyteller, and loved nothing more than a cocktail party. Bob was a voracious reader, an astute (and opinionated) political observer and an avid email joke forwarder. He was given nicknames throughout his life by those who loved him including: Bob-o, The Bish, BBQ Bob, Pool Bob, Bubba and Papa Duck.

Bob is survived by his wife of nearly 36 years, Rita Bishop; daughters Leslie (Rick) Franco and Allyson (Bart) Crawford; grandsons Will, Jay, Holt, Si and Luke; brother, Bill Bishop; and many loving extended family members and friends.

Please join Bob’s family at the Whitefish Lake Golf Club on Monday, July 30 from 1-3 pm to share your stories and memories of Bob, and to toast to a life well lived!

In lieu of flowers, Bob requested donations to the Alzheimer’s Association, c/o Leslie Bishop Franco, Alzheimer’s Association Northern California and Northern Nevada, 2290 North First Street, Suite 101, San Jose, CA 95131 or alz.org/norcal

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”