Robert "Bob" F. Marcus

Robert "Bob" F. Marcus’s last pun killed on November 22, 2024, in West Newton, MA. Born in Pittsburgh on January 17, 1944 to Irvan V. Marcus and Jeannette E. (Price) Marcus, Bob excelled at Taylor Alderdice High School in the Iron City’s Squirrel Hill section. After winning a scholarship to college and enlisting in the army as a civilian during Vietnam, Bob ultimately dedicated himself to clinical social work, assisting those with serious mental illness reap-er their lives—a career he urned to undertake.

At a young age, Bob re-hearsed as a trumpeter, performing with the Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York tri-state band before attending Brandeis University, where he played with many orchestras and ensembles all while getting his master’s degree. Although Bob can no longer think outside the box, his creativity, research, and empathy contributed to the deinstitutionalization movement of the 1970s and 80s, earning him praise from the Carter administration. And while he continued this passion for learning and pushing up boundaries in stressed torah study debates, his gregarious smile and welcoming demeanor always got the group past tense.

Bob was inspired and motivated by his loving wife of 34 years, Susan Phillips, the Beth El congregation, and the hundreds of patients he worked with at group homes and hospitals until his retirement. He loved and spoiled his son, Aaron Marcus, who remains in Philadelphia where he walks in Bob’s shadow pursuing social justice as a career public defender.

Bob also never let his love for music die—waking the dead with his melodies for over 67 years. He played first trumpet in the Concord and Lexington bands, and citywide ensembles compost of musicians from around the Boston area, with pinnacle performances at the famous Hatch Shell.

In addition to Susan and Aaron, he is survived by a wonderful sister Sara Brooks, cousins, and many devoted friends and colleagues. And although his wife thought of him as smoking hot, so cremation seemed appropriate, the circumstances plotted against him. Therefore, services will be held promptly on Tuesday, November 26, 2024 at Congregation Beth El, 105 Hudson Road, Sudbury, MA at 9:30 AM. Interment to follow at Beit Olam Cemetery, 60 Old Sudbury Road, Wayland, MA at 11:00 AM. Contributions in lieu of daisies can be made to the ACLU, the Southern Poverty Law Center, or to a food bank of your choice.