Robert “Bob” G. Personius

Rosary Service:  Thursday, Dec. 5, at 10:30 a.m.  Location:  St. Mary Catholic Church in Anacortes, WA

Robert Giles Personius, son of Veronica and Giles Personius and father to Janet Lynn (Hanks), David Giles, Stephen Francis, Timothy Lee and Mark, grandfather to Margaret, Mei Lei, Robert, Ross, DeeAnna, Forest, Hans and Hjelle, great-grandfather to Thomas, Michael and Maximus, moved on from this life surrounded by family, music and love on November 17, 2019.
Born in Valley City, ND, in 1922, and later moving to Bismarck where he graduated from high school, Robert (Bob) enjoyed hunting, fishing and exploring the rivers, marshes and prairies of North Dakota.
After serving in combat in World War II in the 104th Infantry Division in France, Belgium and Germany, and earning a Bronze Star, Robert earned a B.S. degree in wildlife management at Oregon State University where he met and married Mary Dolores “Dee” Brown. Bob then earned a M.S. in Fisheries degree at the University of Minnesota where he and Dee started a family.
Bob never abandoned his life-long love of conservation biology. He dedicated his career to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service including stints in Washington DC, as assistant refuge manager for Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge in Illinois, refuge manager for the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin and refuge manager for the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in California. Bob’s landmark work in wildlife management left an indelible impression upon his family with dinner time visits from conservation greats such as George Archibald and Fran Hamerstrom. Bob often recalled his favorite memories from his federal service as those during the ten years their family lived in the old farmhouse on the edge of the marsh in Horicon National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin.
After retiring from federal service, Bob settled in Anacortes, WA, with Dee in 1989 and built their dream house overlooking Puget Sound. Dee passed away in 1997, but Bob was fortunate to meet a second remarkable woman in Ermalinda Guzman while visiting a decoy show in California. They married on November 27, 1999, and continued to enjoy the Anacortes area often spotted at garage sales, the library, music, theatre and dining venues in the area. Bob was a lifelong decoy collector and duck hunter who loved to make an annual fall hunting pilgrimage with his sons and a few high school buddies to the Prairie Pothole region of North Dakota and Canada.
Bob bestowed upon his children a love of the outdoors, literature, conservation, science and art. He loved sharing a cold wind-swept duck blind, fishing boat, or mountain hike to an alpine lake with friends and family. He loved to sing, had a quick wit, and was always known and loved as a “character.” He was blessed in later years with a growing family of grandchildren and great grandchildren and passed along to them a rich history of memories of his life and times.
Robert is survived by his second wife of 20 years, Ermalinda; his sister, Eileen (Walen) and his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He will be remembered in their hearts and minds for his love of the outdoors, conservation, science and the arts.
A Rosary Service will be held at 10:30 a.m., Thursday, Dec. 5, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial and then a reception at St. Mary Catholic Church in Anacortes, WA. Military honors will be presented at the service. Bob would have wanted anyone wishing to make a memorial contribution to simply support (with their time or money) their favorite conservation minded organization.
To share memories of Bob, please sign the online guestbook at www.evanschapel.com