Robert Jerome Luther

Robert Jerome Luther was a Letterman Athlete, Beloved Coach and Uncle, Math and History Teacher, Pilot, Golfer, Scuba Diver, Tennis Player, Children’s Furniture Manufacturer, Loyal Friend, and Deeply Loved Husband and stepfather.

He valiantly fought the good fight but lost his battle to Cancer on May 30th. He was 88.

After having a Glioblastoma brain tumor removed in January, Bob and wife Jennifer continued to enjoy their life together with gusto, only to find out in May that the elusive pain in his hip was more cancer, this time in his pelvic bone, and inoperable. As a testament to his physical and mental strength and his desire to overcome obstacles at all costs without giving up, he succumbed to the pain of his cancer only in the last five days of his life.

Until then, Bob and Jennifer kept dancing together at the Coronado Cays Yacht Club ‘till he couldn’t stand up anymore. Married 38 years, Dancing was a passion they shared ever since Bob and Jennifer fell in love on the dance floor of the famous Marine Room restaurant on the La Jolla waterfront. The band was playing “You Light Up My Life” by Debbie Boone, which became “their song.” Their wedding reception was held in that very same place, and of course, the band played their favorite song.

Born in Indianola, Nebraska in 1935, Bob was the youngest of the 11 children of Leo J. Luther and Anna Marie Lennemann. Blessed with a big, warm, supportive, and loving family, and many lifelong friends, his 10 siblings have all sadly passed away as did his closest childhood and college football pals.

Bob grew up to be a big strong 6’5” tall athlete, the epitome of strength - playing Football, Basketball, and running Track in the small town of Holdredge, Nebraska. He played sports with passion and discipline, pushing himself to be the best he could be. A coach passing through town watched him play and arranged a full-ride scholarship in both Football and Basketball at Nebraska’s Hastings College.

On the Hastings Football Team, he played Tackle and End. (Those days they didn’t have Tight Ends.) Once, Bob had a concussion playing college football that was so bad he was hospitalized for a week. When Jennifer finally heard about it many years later, she knew how lucky they were that his life had been spared back then.

In College Basketball, Bob was mostly in Center position but sometimes was a Forward. He also ran Track in college, and qualified for state, but he had shin-splints so bad he couldn’t participate in the championship game.

Halfway through his college courses he took time out to enlist in the Navy for two years, as an Aviation Electronics Technician, (ATN-3). He felt he was very lucky to be flying to Europe as one of the repair crew on Navy planes. He joked that his team was able to provide a day or two of extra layover time in Europe once while the airplane they arrived on needed to be repaired. You see, he and his buddies had snipped an important wire (in the middle of a big bundle of wires) and claimed they had to stay over to find the mysterious problem with the plane. Meanwhile they were able to see a bit of Europe for a day or two, all on the Navy. He completed his four-year military enlistment with two additional years of active Army reserves.

Graduating with a BA in Math, and minors in both Secondary Education and History, Bob became a Math and History Teacher and a Top Coach for eight years at North High in Omaha, Nebraska. He guided them to a share of the Class A title and the Grand Championship in the State track meets. His cross-country crews lost only 3 out of 47 times in dual meets, were state champions twice and placed second twice.

During his earlier summers, he did part-time construction work and he worked a little in the Luther Packing Company, first run by his father and then his brother, where they prepared and sold Nebraska beef.

For three summers Bob was hired to manage the Omaha public swimming pools when he wasn’t teaching and coaching. He delighted in hiring his high school athletes to help run all those pools. He also completed 27 additional hours of postgraduate study in his Math major at Stanford, Kansas State, and Creighton University.

From 1970 to 1974 Bob left Nebraska to teach Math to kids on American military bases in Puerto Rico and Okinawa, Japan through the Department of Defense. He also Coached while in Puerto Rico and his athletes were undefeated in Football and Track.

It was during this period that Bob got his Scuba Diving License and discovered the fabulous underwater world of remote Palau as well as other unique diving spots. In Puerto Rico he also got his pilot’s license and commercial pilot’s license then flew himself and his friends over to the mainland for a little R&R.

By 1974, when he ended his overseas DOD teaching contract, Bob realized he preferred warm weather over Nebraska winters, so he moved to San Diego. He taught math as a substitute teacher at La Jolla High, then bought a couple of laundromats with his savings. Several years later at age 50, he sold his laundromats, finally got married, and purchased a small manufacturing company and made children’s decorative painted furniture. He upgraded, innovated, and successfully managed that challenging business with 13 loyal employees until he retired 16 years later in 2002.

Not too long after that Bob and Jennifer took the best trip of their lifetime traveling through Russia on a Viking River Cruise, starting with Palaces in Saint Petersburg and ending up in Moscow. That followed with a stay in a storybook castle in France while exploring other castles in the Loire River valley.

One of Bob’s greatest pleasures in life was playing a weekly round of golf with 20 terrific friends in the Rowe golf group. He treasured his golf buddies, who all shared their superb humor together at the end of the day and oftentimes showed great brilliance on the golf course too. After playing for 30 years, he had advanced to become the oldest of the group, having outlived many previous members. Bob played golf until he was 86, only stopping when his hip pain became too much to bear.

During his 3 weeks in Hospice care at home, Jennifer took Bob everywhere they could go in his new wheelchair, on pain pills. Each week they joined his golf buddies at various golf courses at the end of their golf day, drinking beer, eating nachos, and sharing a little priceless humor.

Bob was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers and three of their wives: Bud, Donald, Raymond, and Charles Luther, and six sisters: toddlers Mary and Dorothy Luther, Evelyn Ferree, Wilma Hoppe, Virginia Needham, Jean Cummings, and all of their husbands.

He is survived by Jennifer, his devoted wife, her daughters Julie and Dana, four grandchildren: Stephanie, Christopher, Zachary, and Nicholas, his many close Nieces and Nephews who Bob loved to keep in touch with, many friends, and one last sister-in law, Kathleen Luther. Our kind, friendly, gentle giant will be greatly missed.

A Memorial Service for BOB will be held: 11 am Saturday, July 29th

at: First Presbyterian Church www.fpcsd.org/directions for parking info

320 Date Street, San Diego CA 92101

A Reception will follow at the Church

Burial of his Ashes will be: 11 am Monday, July 31st Please arrive 15 minutes prior.

at: Miramar National Cemetery

5795 Nobel Drive, San Diego CA 92122

Take an immediate right entering the cemetery. Park in Lane #1, which is the far left lane. This is designated parking for the Next-of-Kin as well as all other members of the party, lining up directly behind your vehicles. You will be led to the parking lot by the Covered Shelter for the service.