There are those who seem to stand out In their winning, smiling ways Even with secret sufferings They do not dwell that way But share the good, the heart they give And leave bittersweet memories to those who live.
I read about his passing last night and I am still in shock.......He was a very special man and was loved by many here on Gather. His wit and humor will be greatly missed by all.
What makes me feel so bad about Rob's passing is that he could probably have lived a lot longer if he had tried harder for longer. His wounded will to live is what really killed him. But I guess we can't know his pain and lack of hope for the future. I wonder if we could have made a positive difference if we had been face to face friends so he could see and believe how many of us liked and admired him. His death leaves a hole in the hearts of his friends here at Gather.
There is a huge hole in my heart Ruth, he was a special friend to me, as many are, but Rob was almost like a son in my feelings towards him, I hope we can help others, Rob did that for many, he was an inspiration to many
Thank you John, Rob was a very good friend to many, and special to me in so many little ways, interaction on Gather, and also in our outside Gather friendship,
I am very sadden by this news Sue, know you cared for him too, and yes, I know he cared for me, and I am shocked beyond belief, he was so upbeat when I talked to him last.
That is so sweet, Elsie. Rob was a good person, an asset to the Gather community and I was honored to have known him and have him on my "friend" list. Your post made me smile and I looked at that pic he used for an icon so many times.
I can barely type through the tears. I am sickened by this and guilt ridden for not making it to see him in New York as we talked of it often. I am thnakful for the way he touched my life though as I know he did many. Elsie, God doesn't take all of the good ones young... YOU my sweet sweet friend are still with us! I love you much also.
Seems like someone should have been making him take better care of himself, but you can't force people to do that, I think he was in a deep depression for a long time, just from his writing to me, I am saddened beyond belief, thank you Flit
Whole thing should never have happened - if he had had good care when he first became ill he would not have lost his leg, not have had his health compromised so damn much, and not been sent home to cope without the resources he needed. How could he not become depressed?
You are so right Flit, should never have happened any of it, I wish I had lived close to him, but we wrote back and forth all the time, being alone and ill is a very depressing atmosphere in itself,
I was so saddened when I read of his death in a post yesterday. He was one of my very first connections here. He had a hard time in life and I know he loved the special relationship you shared with him. You were a blessing to him just as he was to you. Sending prayers for all who loved Rob.
Thank you, Elsie. I, too, loved Rob very much. He was a very special friend. With us he was mostly cheery and upbeat, even through his struggles, but he suffered a lot, especially being so alone with everything. I am so sad that he has left us. I hope he is at peace now.
I hope he is at peace now too, he struggled all his life but made it a successful one, until his health caught up with him, no more pain for him, and I hope Heaven has a lot of cookies.
His Friends Scott said he had a heart attack but has been in the hospital for a couple of months with diabetic complications and his blood pressure out of control. He told me that when I spoke to him too, then I couldn't get him on the phone again, maybe he was in rehab or something, will miss him so much, thank you Denise
Thanks, Elsie. Many hearts are suffering from hearing of Rob's passing. I remember him being one of the first on Gather to comment on one of my articles.
Shirley , he commented on me too, one of the first, and we were great friends, I and all on Gather will really miss him as you say, his humor and his wit, and his rants, all wonderful
thanks elsie, you are an awesome lady and rob was pretty awesome himself i talked to him a few times on the phone, then nothing i had no clue this was going on with him.
Robert, I talked to him too, knew he was very ill, but I was told he was stable a few days ago when I called but couldn't get him, We will all miss him very much
Such a touching tribute to Rob, Elsie. He was such a part of so many people's lives. I did not know him well, but I do hope he felt how important he was to his friends here on Gather. He certainly will be missed.
Thank you Natalie, he was special to many of us here on Gather, he was a wonderful story teller, and he wrote mostly about himself, I always said each piece should be a chapter in a book about an unbelievably good man
Such sad news. I wanted to add my appreciation for Rob, we come to care about those we never met because they share their soul when writing here. What a caring man. He will be missed by many.
Holding all Rob's close Gather friends in my heart today. Sandy
Scott , so nice to see you here, and yes, he did just that, and the feelings were reciprocated, I will miss him, there is another hole in my heart today, I did love him , you know.
The one thing I have always liked about Gather is that there are so many people on here who serve as an inspiration to others. Rob was one of those people. I hope he knew that.
It is extremely hard for me to believe that Rob is no longer with us. I spoke to him not long ago, and wrote to you all about it, he was a very special friend to me, we talked a lot together, and I will miss his wit an humor, also his serious issues he deallt with here on Gather, his patriotism and love of counrty and pride in his hometown, We will miss him very much, on most every piece I ever put up, his comment was right there at the top, that is how I knew he was so ill this time, God Bless You and Keep You Rob, I love you, Elsie
I will miss Rob, he could be serious, funny and like us have cranky days. Days you could just feel his happiness and others, know his sadness. He didn't hold back.
Norma, he was an extremely honest man, one of his many great traits, thank you for being here today, I hope you are well and happy, Rob would want you to take care of yourself too,
I am heartbroken. He helped me with my father's illness so much and he made me laugh when I thought Alzheimer's was going to take the whole family with it. Really, I am just so sad...and Elsie...I just know how much he adored you!
Karen, I am sure he helped you through your father's illness, he always had a great comment for all, and his humor was part of his charm, I will miss him as all will here on gather, he was a very special man.
Oh Elsie, what a beautiful tribute and poem........it is soooo difficult to believe that Rob is really gone.......what a terrible shock. He always cared so much for others; even when he was in such dire pain, he always cared about others and concerned for their welfare.......it's such a difficult time for everyone here on Gather. Thanks so much, Elsie, for such a lovely poem!
hello Elsie, I hope that you are well.. Rob is at peace. you know he had his demons.. he will be missed but never forgotten..his posts here are still alive with his wit and humor.. i don't know how long Gather will keep them up? i was the secret friend from PA that sent him cookies ,tea,coffee and that china tea cup last summer..LOL..he was so thrilled..poor fellow..loved his cookies.. good night..sad day ..
He did love those cookies even though he shouldn't have been eating them, but he loved every one of them and I knew you had to be one who sent him things as I am also a lucky recipient of your home made goodies, thank you so much Sheila
Elsie, this is such a loving piece for Rob. It makes me feel a bit better about it all. I respected Rob for the way he said what needed to be said, and how he could give a voice to the gay community. It would be hard to not see the human being in a gay person after reading some of Rob's pieces. I will miss him, though I was not among his inner circle, but always enjoyed his zany comments on your articles and had more than a few giggles reading them. He did love to banter about with you. I know you soothed his hurts on many occasions. You gave him love and acceptance. There's no better gift than you could have given him than the love you shared with him.
Thank you Lynn, his sense of humor was enormous and he was a caring loving man, and always a friend to the underdog, we will miss him here for a long time to come.
Elsie, I wanted to make sure to tell you. That I am sorry for the loss of your friend. I wish that I knew him better as I hear so much good from everyone.
Oh, Elsie, I am so sorry that Rob passed. I too thought that maybe he would rebound again.... We will all miss him and his wit and humor. I know he was very dear to you, and you have my deep sympathy...........
Oh Elsie! I didn't know until I saw your post. I knew he'd had a bad set back and was ill. I'm so sorry to hear of his passing. He was a very special sweet fellow. I know you two were close friends. Bless you sweetie. He'll be missed here.
Thank you Wanda, we were an odd couple for friendships, but it was there, and it was wonderful while it lasted and will be remembered by me forever, he will be missed for sure
A wonderful tribute to Rob. You can take consolation in that you and Scott were true friends to him and made his life much happier than it would have been without you. He had so much fun with you over the naked twister dancing exchange. I think you really touched his heart and he surely did need the moral support you gave him. I had a motherly feeling toward him too. I wished he lived out here where the weather is mild and where I could help him. It must have been awfully hard for him to climb stairs to his apartment after his leg was removed. And my daughter knows all too well how to deal with diabetes because her daughter had it since 4 years old. I hate it that Rob endured so much only to be overwhelmed in the end. But isn't it wonderful how we can become real loving friends on the internet without ever really meeting each other? I'm glad I lived so long to know everyone who posted here.
Yes, Ruth, I am glad I have lived this long to be part of a site like this one, we may never meet , any of us, but we have a lot in common, all of us, we need someone to talk to and commiserate with, that is an old word isn't it, love you, Elsie
awe elsie very nicely said. He was an awesome man and will never be forgotten. The town is talking about doing some sort of memorial for him. If they do I will be sure and post what I can .
oh also if you would like to see what the locals are saying you can go to www.fingerlakes1.com and go to forums... then seneca county He was an icon here god bless him
Thanks Elsie for the lovely memorial for Rob....I have not been on Gather in over a week and just found out of his death. I knew you were close and was glad when you gave us updates. I so enjoyed his photo extravaganzas and how he would keep us in stitches about the smallest things. I will miss Rob and his wit, charm and imaginative writing and photo essays......
Elsie - Rob loved you so much - and this was such a beautiful tribute. I just found out he had died and was so sad and shocked. He was one who was so alive and fun - he will be missed - I know I'll miss him so much.
I will try to catch up with your posts soon. Sorry I've missed so many. Salud
Although I didn't know him well, I always appreciated when I received a comment from him. He always came across as very honest and true to himself. Even though I knew he was not in good health, I was very surprised when I read he had died through a comment in someone elses' post about another Gather member's death.
Back again to thank you for posting this article. Otherwise I would not have known of his passing. Even though we have many connections we cannot know everything that goes on in the gather community. I know Rob is smiling down on you Elsie, I am sure he always enjoyed hearing your voice on the phone. You are such a great Lady.
Elsie, I guess the way we have to look at it is.....we got the rare privilege of knowing a gifted person. He was a star in our sky for such a short time. Now he is a star again, watching over us. I hope he knows how much he was loved....finally.
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Comments: 116
In their winning, smiling ways
Even with secret sufferings
They do not dwell that way
But share the good, the heart they give
And leave bittersweet memories to those who live.
belief, thank you Flit
He will be greatly missed.
Featured in the Triple Name Club,
That so beautiful, he will be missed !
He was a beautiful man who touched a lot of lives on Gather. Rest in peace, Rob.
Holding all Rob's close Gather friends in my heart today. Sandy
It is extremely hard for me to believe that Rob is no longer with us. I spoke to him not long ago, and wrote to you all about it, he was a very special friend to me, we talked a lot together, and I will miss his wit an humor, also his serious issues he deallt with here on Gather, his patriotism and love of counrty and pride in his hometown, We will miss him very much, on most every piece I ever put up, his comment was right there at the top, that is how I knew he was so ill this time, God Bless You and Keep You Rob, I love you, Elsie
He didn't hold back.
you to take care of yourself too,
Thanks so much, Elsie, for such a lovely poem!
Featured at Grass Roots Writing
Mark
I hope that you are well..
Rob is at peace. you know he had his demons..
he will be missed but never forgotten..his posts here are still alive with his wit and humor..
i don't know how long Gather will keep them up?
i was the secret friend from PA that sent him cookies ,tea,coffee and that china tea cup last summer..LOL..he was so thrilled..poor fellow..loved his cookies..
good night..sad day ..
I wish that I knew him better as I hear so much good from everyone.
I too thought that maybe he would rebound
again....
We will all miss him and his wit and humor.
I know he was very dear to you, and you have
my deep sympathy...........
Elsie, the poem was top drawer.
www.fingerlakes1.com and go to forums... then seneca county
He was an icon here god bless him
I will try to catch up with your posts soon. Sorry I've missed so many. Salud
Even though I knew he was not in good health, I was very surprised when I read he had died through a comment in someone elses' post about another Gather member's death.
I know Rob is smiling down on you Elsie, I am sure he always enjoyed hearing your voice on the phone. You are such a great Lady.