Robert John Jaeger

Robert served honorably in the United States Air Force during the time of Vietnam. After military service, Robert went on to academia, where he was a Professor at the Pritzker Institute of Medical Engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology, and an Adjunct Professor at both Northwestern University Medical School and the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. He then went on to government service at the National Science Foundation as the Disability Research Director, the Department of Veterans Affairs as Director of Post-Deployment Health Research, and finally, the Department of Health and Human Services, from which he retired as the Director of the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research.

Robert married Deborah in 1973 and they made their home in Hinsdale, Illinois; Arlington, Virginia; and Charlotte, North Carolina. He was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. He always had a special interest in supporting veterans. He will be fondly remembered for his good sense of humor and his devotion to his family.

Robert is survived by his wife, Deborah Jaeger (nee Williams); his daughter, Kristin (David) Fein; his son, Max (Caci Cambruzzi) Jaeger; his grandchildren: Elizabeth Fein, Meredith Fein, Abigail Jaeger, Alexander Jaeger, and Lillian Jaeger; and his brother, Russell (Ellen) Jaeger. He was preceded in death by his parents, John J. Jaeger, Jr., and Katherine J. Jaeger (nee Hoenes); his brother, James Allen Jaeger; and his grandparents, Julius Hoenes and Irene Hoenes (nee Bulkley), and John J. Jaeger, Sr., and Lucy V. Jaeger (nee Buski).

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to Disabled American Veterans (help.dav.org) or Messiah Lutheran Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.