Four months ago,I learned of Dr. Allen's passing at a NIH Grants Associates Romeo Lunch. I learned it from Dr. Robert Beall, an associate of Robert Allen when he worked for Dr. George Brooks at NIAMD/NIH in the Westwood Building in Bethesda, MD. At that time, I was employed by The National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) in the same building. Bob and I along with other colleagues used to play both singles and doubles tennis just across the street from the Westwood Building. Later, both Bob and I relocated to the VA Central Office in downtown Washington, D.C.  For six years, Bob as Special Assistant to The Director of Medical Research Services (MRS) and I as Chief of Field Operations, MRS, later Special Assistant to MRS Director for Agent Orange and Radiation Research shared an office as well as secretarial support. We had a great relationship and I will always be grateful to Bob for his unselfish support of me during a nearly impossible task of conducting an unbiased review of VA proposals investigating the "Effects of Agent Orange on Soldiers Serving in Vietnam". The difficulty of this assignment was based on the fact that families of these soldiers were relentlessly clamoring for answers as to why their loved ones were either dying or were permanently affected by their exposure. We could absolutely not afford to get it wrong and thanks to Bob, we didn't. After six years at the VACO, I returned to NIH from whence I retired in 2006. I spoke with Bob two or three times after parting ways with the VA but subsequently we lost contact.
One memorable event which I vividly recall was someone had a birthday lunch at the VA and Bob  consumed a bit too many drinks. I remember another VA employee and I driving Bob all the way to his home on Jeb Stuart Court  because he could not drive and barely could walk. When we arrived at his house, Roma Leah greeted us and asked what happened. We told her and she never batted an eyelash; end of story.  (Matthew Kinnard
301-454-0111

David's message at funeral:
I was lucky enough to be Bob Allen's Son. With that came frustrating times, good times, and great times. Luckily the good and great times were often and the frustrating times were few. When I think of my dad and the life we shared I think of funny times, serious times, caring times, and many many life lessons which he was never short on. But some of best memories that I have of my time with him was traveling. As I am sure you know, our family has been lucky enough to travel the world and my mom and him took me and my sister with them as much as possible. Even though he was not adventurous we went horseback riding through Montana and Wyoming, snorkeling all over the Caribbean, and white water rafting in costa rica, just to name a few. So many fun memories come from these trips and funny ones too. I think some of the time he enjoyed them just to be able to tell his friends and neighbors the latest way my mother had tried to kill us all. Even though he was not adventurous, he never wanted to be left out and never wanted us or him to miss out on something that might be fun. One of the best life lessons that I learned was to try new things and put yourself out there. I cannot think of many instances where he discouraged me from doing something or said I would not be able to do it. Even when we told him my mom and I would climb Kilimanjaro, he said we were crazy but never stood in our way. I think that says something about the person he was. He had a never give up attitude and never accepted defeat, even over the last few years. I am sure that came from his humble beginnings growing up in a small town in Texas where his family was not able to travel much and didn't have the most opportunities. I think back to when I was young and was struggling with a learning disability that he said a doctor had come to his school and conducted some tests. They had told him that he would likely never make it past high school and that he should just get a job in the local steel foundry. Where many would have given up, he took it as a challenge. Never short of motivation or curiosity he was able to graduate with his PHD, a far cry from a job in a steel foundry. With this he always appreciated the benefits of education. He told me and my sister that he would always pay for college no matter how many degrees we wanted to pursue. He said that once you obtain the education that is something that no one can ever take away from you. That is one of the best things that he could have ever given me or my sister. A free education. He used to say why should people listen to you. If you are speaking on a subject matter you need to have the education and degrees to make people listen to you. Having that education would also lead to his next life lesson of always having options. He encouraged us to never put all our eggs in one basket and make the best choices we could.  
On the other hand his drive for education and a genuine curiosity would often drive the rest of us crazy. It was not uncommon when you would first see him after a while that he would have a list of questions, often about work or some new purchase you made. When they were visiting your house, you could also bet that the minute he walked through the door he would be asking you questions. Often times conversations would feel more like interviews and it was never just chit chat but he was always genuinely interested in what you were doing. You had to watch out because if you starting saying dates, like I have a big meeting next week, he would write that in his planner. That would always be followed by a string of e-mail on whatever the topic might be and asking how it went. On top of his follow up e-mails he sent e-mails about anything he thought you might be interested in, often spam that he got and thought you might want. He would then re-forward them to you until you responded and often times send you other e-mails asking why you hadn't responded. sorry dad, I just didn't have time to look a JC Pennies latest underwear sale. I compared it to a list serv you could never unsubscribe from. But you could always count on him sending you a joke. This also spoke to his level of organization and preparedness. I have not so fond memories of waking on a snow day with an outlook day calendar printed and slid under my door with 30 minute increments. It was not uncommon to plan out your day on a snow day or busy weekend in 30 minute increments. I would fill them out since I didn't think I had any other choice but my sister rarely if ever did. It was all out of love because he wanted you to be able to accomplish what you wanted to. To my wife's dismay this has carried a bit over into my life where I will often let her know in the morning what I have planned for the day from running, to a errand to home depot. I am sad to say that this is not the only bob habit that will be carried on. I have been know to pretend to go and sit in the car and wait for Erin to go, as my dad often did before church, or shoving snow in shorts, boots, and a jacket. Luckily, other habits have not been carried over such as arriving at an airport over 3 hours early or being prepared for every kind of emergency. I am not sure if you have ever had the opportunity to look in his truck but he would always have a box of supplies from oil to window fluid and multiple umbrellas. He was rarely unprepared from stocking up on Y2K supplies, which we still have propane bottles from, or having enough firewood to last for two years. He also did his best to mitigate risk. One time he even had the tires rotated and oil changed in a rental car before a long trip just to make sure he didn't run into a problem.
Much of this stemmed from his career. For his first real job he worked for NASA. There he worked as a scientist and lead the first NASA Physiology Lab. He was able to create experiments that would be sent to SkyLab but the coolest thing that I think he did was that he was a surrogate astronaut where he would test space suits and other activities in massive water tanks before the astronauts were brought in to run through actions they would take on space walks. This is especially impressive given his fear of the water and that he was trained by Navy Fogmen (now SEAL's) before he was able to do this. But he never wanted to be left behind or miss an opportunity and was always willing to try and concur his fear if it meant he could do something new and exciting. Later in life he was able to work at the VA and work on special projects like the AIDS epidemic and emergency response for the VA. He was always passionate about what he did. I remember him telling me that he was helping the veterans and you could see how much that meant to him. He would often work long hours but he would always be home for dinner and would make as many sporting events to recitals that he could. I remember waking up in the mornings and he would have already been up working in his office. It was not uncommon to wake up and go down stairs or outside to the smell of pipe smoke. It still smells so good even to this day. He also shared with me his principals at work. He use to take a lot of pride in being able to recognize others. It would not be uncommon for him to send flowers or chocolate to people who had helped him whether it was at work or somewhere else to show his gratitude for something, they had done for him. It was always important to him to be kind or say a nice word to others.
His passion for work, genuine curiosity, and desire to help carried over in his personal life too. When even I would call he would want to know what I was working on and with who. He loved to talk about work and any insight he could give you that might help you solve a problem or advance. He would love to bring up stories to relate to whatever problem you were having. It was not uncommon to tell him about a difficult work situation and then he would follow it with well at NASA as he did his best to help you take a different perspective. He was always a problem solver. Whenever he would have to go somewhere to talk about an issue he was having, like verison over his phone, he always talked to the head tech or the manager or owner. But that didn't always fare him well. He tried to be a handy man but often times came up a bit short. The most interesting project he undertook was the remodeling of deck stairs that lead to the back door. He created something that can only be compared to a circus ride with the steps horribly out of conformity. At one point Jen refused to let her kids walk up them with fear that they might fall.
The one thing that he loved more than being a problem solver was medicine. He always loved talking about the next cool and interesting thing they discovered. If he ever saw you or heard you on the phone with a cough you were in for 15 minutes of questions and a diagnosis. Often times he would use his knowledge of what he had seen in a hospital 45 years ago as the basis. I often times tried to explain that a lot has changed in those 45 years but there was no changing his mind. He was often stubborn and he rarely accepted defeat in something that he felt was true although he did love learning new things.
That is one of the reasons he loved to travel. He loved meeting new people and seeing the world. I once asked him if he like to travel and he said no. He said he hated to travel but loved the destinations. Other than trips we were always an outdoor family and always on the move. We would bike ride, canoe, or hike almost every weekend growing up. In addition to being outside, my dad loved food, especially sweets. During football season, we would often have huge fish fry's after church. We would have enough curly fries, catfish, and hush puppies to feed 15 people. We never had a meal without desert and he always had chocolate or other cake treats hidden all over the house. As Jen said, he had honey buns hidden everywhere. I remember getting up in the morning and a used fork would be in the sink and part of a cake would be missing. When my mom would be gone he would still do his best to cook and we would often end up eating over the sink. It seemed perfectly normal at the time. Even after he had type 2 diabetes his still had sweets hidden. I often ask him if that was part of his diet and he would quickly change subjects. One of my fondest memories was taking the metro downtown on my days off and we would go to eat at filaminos or the chophouse, my favorite. He would walk me through DC and we would end up at his office and he would take me around introducing me to everyone. He would introduce me and then explain a seemingly mediocor activity I had done as if I had conquered Everest.
One thing I never questioned was how proud he was of me and my sister and much he loved me and my family even though we had a small one. Family was always important to him and he always wanted us to be together. In fact he was so proud and talked about us so much that most people I meet know my resume better than I do. He was always quick to brag and tell every about me and Jen and our family's. He also pushed us to do better and get that next degree. A huge motivating force that has lead me to all of my education has been my father and I have him to thank for so much of my success. It wasn't only him pushing me to be better but the massive amounts of his free time that he invested in me. After my parents found out that I had a learning disability they sent me to private schools to help me learn how to manage and cope and succeed with that disability. On top of that he would spend hours helping me study at nights for big tests and would always help with projects. Looking back I don't know how he did it all. He told me once someone asked him why spend so much time helping me to study and so much money on private schools. He said not investing in me was never something he even considered. If I needed that to potentially be successful later in life it was never an option.
Even if he did drive me and my family crazy I will miss him like crazy. The weekly phone calls, the perfect present at birthdays and Christmas, and even all his questions. There is a song that whenever I hear it always makes me think of him. The lyrics go:
Lately I've been noticing I say the same things he used to say
And I even find myself acting the very same way
I tap my fingers on the table To the rhythm in my soul
And I jingle the car keys When I'm ready to go
When I look in the mirror He's right there in my eyes
Starin' back at me and I realize

The older I get
The more I can see
How much he loved my mother and my sister and me
And he did the best that he could
And I only hope when I have my own family
That everyday I see
A little more of my father in me

There were times I thought he was bein'
Just a little bit hard on me
But now I understand he was makin' me
Become the man he knew that I could be
In everything he ever did
He always did with love
And I'm proud today to say I'm his son
When somebody says I hope I get to meet your dad
I just smile and say you already have

He's in my eyes
My heart, my soul
My hands, my pride
And when I feel alone

And I think I can't go on
I hear him sayin' "Son you'll be alright"
Everything's gonna be alright"

And I only hope when I have my own family
That everyday I see
Oh I hope I see
I hope everyday I see
A little more of my father in me


Jennifer's Message at her Dad's funeral:

My dad loved his family very much and instilled in us a core value system.  Whenever we stumbled, he could have accepted our complaining and advised us to take the easy way out and quit. But he'd have none of that. He fully expected us to see things through, all the way to the end without drama. Allens Don't Quit" he'd always say to me.  I do remember one time when there was an exception to this motto, when we started piano lessons.  I was always complaining about having to practice.  My dad made a deal with me that he would take lessons too and if he quit, then I could quit.  I am sure in his mind he did not anticipate quitting!  When it came to practicing my mom had to badger both of us to practice, needless to say, neither one of us can play the piano.  

My dad loved the outdoors.  I remember many weekends when my friends were hanging out at the mall, I was riding my bike 20 plus miles to reach his favorite restaurant.  My mom loved biking and my dad loved a good meal.  They compromised by having our half way point be a restaurant.  He also loved canoeing, horseback riding, biking and relaxing on the beach.  

Family was very important to my dad.  When I was growing up my friends would call us "The Brady Bunch."  I would be picked up from a friends house, soccer practice or any activity with my entire family in the car. Usually with all the windows down!!  

When I was a teenager I didn't enjoy the massive amount of photos taken by my dad. I remember coming home and he would greet me at the airport with balloons and flash bulbs. He would take photos of food, people, scenery, houses, everything!  Now with a family of my own I appreciate looking back on all our adventures. 

His granddaughters will miss his stories, jokes and back scratches.  The girls have several funny memories from when Mimi and Grandad took care of them over a long weekend. The walk to school included a military call and response song, hair drying while watching the football game and deer spotting after getting lost at night.  Ava and Grandad also loved feeding and watching the deer on Jeb Stuart Court. 

Neil's will miss working with Bob on home improvement projects, going to the range and discussing what to do in worst case scenarios.  

If you're here today, and I thank you for that, that means that he touched your life in some way or another.

Friends and family will miss his jokes and poppy emails on birthdays and anniversaries.

Tom and I will always remember Bob's smile and ready laugh. He was a wonderful neighbor. I'll never forget one spring when he knocked on our door to tell us he'd rototilled our garden for us with the equipment he'd rented to do his own garden.  We didn't have the heart to tell him we'd already planted our early peas.  That summer we had pea plants springing up everywhere!  Our heartfelt sympathy to Roma, Jennifer, David and their families.

Bob,
  We know that your life made a difference to your family, friends and country. Safe travels to your new home.
  Howard and Carol Mendelsohn

May you find comfort in your memories and strength as you pray to your heavenly father, God, who will give you " everlasting comfort ". 2 Thessalonians 2 : 16,17

We wiil cherish happy memories of Bob's wonderful laugh and amazing enthusiasm for all the experiences of life! A bright light is gone from this world but is lighting eternity. Sending love and sympathy

Thinking of you all and hoping that your memories will be a comfort to you--now and in the future.

Dear Roma Leah,
Bob's engaging smile jumped out when I looked in the Washington Post.  We are so sorry to hear the news and will keep you and your family in our prayers.  May your wonderful memories of Bob bring peace and comfort to you and your family now and in the years ahead.

My heart goes out to David and his family at this difficult time. Dr. Allen clearly was a remarkable man, with an incredible family. May you all continue to feel his love and presence.

We are all blessed having known  Bob.  My sincerest condolences.

I will always have warm memories of Bob, who was a consummate professional and a delightful colleague during the years we were at VACO. Sincere condolences to his  family and many friends; we were fortunate to know him.

I grieve with you and pray for your peace.

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. My deepest sympathy and condolences to the family during this time of grief. Psalms 55 : 22.

Thank you for sharing the photographs of Bob when he was so healthy and happy!  He was, indeed, larger than life in everything he did.  We worked together for many years and I can honestly say there was no one like him.  I shall miss him and send my deepest condolences to Roma and the children and grandchildren.

Dear Roma Leah, I can't say in words how sad I feel.  Many years have passed since the time that we were neighbors, but I feel like it was just yesterday that we all moved away.  Bob even took the time to visit us in Simi Valley on one of his trips.  
Bob was so much fun, always smiling, always laughing, he was a fantastic man who walked through our lives, and we are better for it.  My deepest sympathies to you and your children.   hugs and more hugs,   vby

As time passes may you continue to rely on God to give you the strength needed to cope with your loss. Knowing that God cares for us is a great source of comfort. (1Peter5:7)

Roma, David, Jennifer and the rest of your family, THANK YOU for sharing Dr. Bob with us for so long!  All of his various "work families" depended on his thoroughness, creativity and productivity. But mostly on his smile.  Dr. Allen made our work easier and he improved the lives of millions of Veterans. And since his retirement, we also depended on him for continued smiles, birthday reminders and funny stories.  To say Dr. Allen was 'one-of-a-kind' is an understatement!  My life is better because he was a part of it and, along with many, I will miss him. So thank you for sharing his happiness with all of us and now our heartfelt condolences are with you and your family.

Rest in peace Dr. Bob.  We had some crazy times working together at the VA.

I worked with Dr. Allen at the VA for many years.I came in as a student, I'm still here, but now anticipating retirement. During one of my dinners with my in-laws, my father-in-law talked about a man who worked with him at NIH, who was so kind, so thoughtful and full of life. He talked about his fast pace walk, his generosity and his jokes.I said I too know a man at the VA named Dr. Allen. As it turns out, we were talking about the same person. I am so blessed to have known Dr. Allen. He always had a story and a smile. He truly loved his family! Even in his retirement, he always remembered us by sending birthday wishes. My heartfelt condolences to the family of the beloved Dr. Allen.

Our deepest sympathy and love to Bob's wife and family.  He was a prince of a husband, father and friend.  May he rest in peace and may his family find comfort in the many, many fond memories of their travels and time together.
Sending our heartfelt prayers and love to the family.
Dick and Anne Fitzgerald

Bob was a wonderful man who taught me much during my early days at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs.  My sincere condolences to his supportive family.  You will be in my prayers. Bob will be missed.

I am saddened to hear of the passing of my old friend.  We worked together for many years at the VA in DC.  My heartfelt condolences to Bob's family and friends.  May he rest in peace.

OBITUARY

Dr. Robert E Allen

October 9, 1941 – July 5, 2016

Serenity Funeral Home

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