Robert Phelps Eckhardt

Born on the east coast of Iowa – Davenport – Robert Eckhardt, was the youngest of three boys born to Walter and Helen Eckhardt. Walter worked for 48 years with the Rock Island Railroad, while Helen maintained the household and children. He went to school in Davenport, graduating from Davenport High School in 1948, before entering Augustana College in Rock Island, IL. Later, he attended Iowa State Teachers College (now the University of Northern Iowa) in Cedar Falls earning a degree in Physical Education and Biology. After college, he joined the U.S Air Force and was stationed at Lowry Air Force Base in Denver, where he first fell in love with the mountains. While there, he attended the University of Colorado and obtained his Master’s Degree in Education Administration in 1954 under the “Operation Bootstrap” program provided by the military service.

It was also during his time in Boulder where he met his wife, Margaret (Marge). After a short courtship, he was transferred to Ipswich, England with the Air Force as Airman 1st Class. He and Marge were married in England the following summer, and lived in nearby Felixstowe for a year. They moved back to Pomona, CA in 1956 and had their first daughter, Lorie.

Two years later, they moved to Wheat Ridge, CO where their second daughter, Lisa, was born. Bob taught driver’s education at Wheat Ridge High School for 4 years and then worked as a planner for Arapahoe and Jefferson Counties and the JeffCo School District, where he retired in 1988 after 21 years. His post retirement job was at REI where he loved to help people find just the right equipment for their outdoor adventures and share stories of his many climbs (while also accumulating a lot more gear). He worked there nearly 20 years.

Bob was one of the first City Councilman when Wheat Ridge became a city in 1970. He was also on the city’s Board of Adjustment, Planning Commission and Parks & Rec Commission over many years.

His wife, Marge, died after 35 wonderful years of marriage in 1990. Later, he and Sheila Brown spent 16 years together in Lakewood, CO. In 2009, he moved to the Mirasol community in Loveland, CO.

Bob’s greatest loves were his wife, his family and the mountains. He climbed all of the Colorado 14ers (54 peaks over 14,000 feet), the highest peaks in California, Wyoming, and Texas, Mt Rainer (WA), the 3 highest mountains in Mexico, as well as peaks in Switzerland, Canada and Bolivia. He trekked in Machu Pichu and Nepal and at 65 years old, he climbed Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. He has passed this love of the outdoors onto his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Bob also loved traveling the world, visiting the 5 main continents and nearly 50 countries, collecting lifelong friendships along the way.

Bob is survived by brother, Walter Eckhardt of Minneapolis; his daughters, Lorie (Lynn) Burnette of Loveland, and Lisa (Gerry) Eckhardt of Oak Park, IL; grandchildren Adrienne (Evan) Brown of Sparks, NV and Christopher (Sha Mei) Sturmer of Kunming, China; and great grandchildren Amelia and Zoey Brown and Bryan Sturmer. He is preceded in death by his wife, Margaret, his brother Gerald and his parents.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the Susan G. Komen Organization, Alzheimer’s Association or any other charity, as he was big supporter of many causes.