Dr. Robert (Bob) L. Osborne
Bob was born April 27, 1934, in Los Angeles, California and grew up a few miles away in Glendale. He was the only son of Robert and Lelia Osborne. He started a distinguished educational path with Junior College in San Fernando Valley before transferring to U.C. Berkeley, graduating in 1956 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.
Bob enjoyed cars and owned a 1950 Mercury for over 60 years which he sadly sold last year. In January 1956, Ginny was washing her Pontiac when Bob came looking for someone to go sailing with him. She says her car served as a “great pickup opportunity.” Bob proposed in June in Yosemite Park and they were married in July.
They moved to the Philadelphia suburbs where Bob worked as an engineer for Westinghouse, completing his M.S. degree from the University of Pennsylvania. They started square dancing and began a life-long love of travel which has taken them all over the world.
In 1963 they returned to Berkeley where Bob earned his Ph.D. degree in Engineering while working at Lawrence Radiation Labs. Back in Philadelphia, Bob managed the Controls Development group for Westinghouse and earned his P.E. He went to China with Westinghouse on the first official U.S. trade delegation. In October 1969, they were invited to the White House for a tour and private meeting with President Nixon in the Oval Office.
Bob was instrumental in founding the Ethel Mason Day Care Center in South Media, PA, providing daycare for the children of working single mothers. He served for seven years on the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board. He also served as Chairman of the Philadelphia section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. To relax, he spent many weekends rehabbing properties in Ocean City, NJ.
In 1983 they were transferred to Florida where Bob managed the Diagnostics Development group at Westinghouse. He retired in 1992 with 13 patents, after which he was an adjunct professor at UCF, teaching courses on Artificial Intelligence.
Bob joined Rotary in 1999 and served as president of the Rotary Club of Orlando East in 2003-2004. He was a deacon and elder in the Tuskawilla Presbyterian Church. Bob loved opera and supported UCF Opera and other local opera programs. Bob and Ginny joined Whirl and Twirl Square Dance Club in 2000 and danced through 2017.
Bob loved his family, who were the most important people in his life. He is survived by his wife, Virginia (Ginny), his sons Robert and Douglas, their wives Vera and Lori, his grandchildren Sofia, Jasmina, Ethan, Emily and godson Gary Meyer. They cherish in their hearts his kindness, sense of humor and love.