Robert (Bob) Blackburn was born in Seattle, Washington, on October 30th, 1934, to Hulda and Roy Blackburn. Bob passed away in Fountain Hills on December 13th at the age of 88. He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Beth Blackburn, and his five children, Mark, Paul, Matt, Chris, and his daughter Melissa Stockmar (Bob Stockmar). He is also survived by his two granddaughters, Haley and Alyssa, the loves of his life, and Paul's son, Cody Blackburn, who is following in his footsteps in Aerospace.
Bob graduated from The University of Kansas in 1956 with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering. In 1959, Bob finished his M.S. in Applied Mathematics/Engineering at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Bob started working for Midwest Research Institute in KC while finishing his B.S. and continued to work there for 38 years. The Federal Government funded all the work, and Bob traveled and presented his work all over the world. He also loved math and saw how students struggled, so he taught Calculus at Johnson Co. Community College several nights a week.
At the age of 60, he moved to Fountain Hills and became self-employed. Four of his peers worked with him on transportation projects until he retired at 80.
While in AZ, Bob also volunteered at Phoenix Rescue Mission, helping homeless people understand what they had to do to become employable.
Bob was also very active in his church, St. Anthony on the Desert, Scottsdale. He was a Junior Warden, Chalice Bearer, and Stephens Minster.
Bob's wife, Beth, traveled with him on projects, and they saw and enjoyed a lot of the world together.
He will be missed by all his family and friends. When a flight is available, his ashes will travel into Outer Space which had fascinated him so much of his life. His family will be there to watch the rocket take off.
