Robert (Bob) Joseph Newman, age 94, passed away due to natural causes in Fort Collins, Colorado, on April 8, 2023.
Bob was born on November 29, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri. He resided in Centennial, Colorado, for 42 years and prior to that lived in Ardmore, Oklahoma; Wichita Kansas; and Tulsa, Oklahoma. He earned a degree in chemical engineering at the University of Kansas. He had worked at only one company his entire life.
After working for the same company for 43 years starting with Bell Oil & Gas, and then through a series of mergers Vickers, Total Petroleum, ending with Valero Energy. By the time he retired, he had achieved a position of president of Total Pipeline. During his career, he invented a new way to convert asphalt into gasoline, earning him a valuable patent for the company.
He enjoyed classical music, woodworking, art museums, and conducted the Denver Symphony one time for “The Nutcracker” as a guest conductor.
He is survived by his four children, James R. Newman (son), Rebecca McClain (daughter), John B. Newman (son), and Judy Newman (daughter). Bob’s wife, Suzie Newman, preceded him in death.
Bob was known to all as being a kind, generous person with a dry sense of humor. He loved his family and his pets. Bob was buried in Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri, on April 11, 2023.
A memorial service was held for Bob on April 14, 2023, at Feldman Mortuary in Denver, Colorado.
Online condolences for the family may be left at louismemorialchapel.com.
