Meet Robert Lynn
Robert (Bob) Harrison Lynn has come to live with us at Caring House. We are honored.
Bob was born in 1921 in Chicago to Fred and Gertie Lynn, the third of their six children. He was raised with 300 more children at the Illinois Masonic Orphans Home in LaGrange, Illinois — which his parents ran with generous love and care. This brought to Bob a deep love for his own family.
He grew up during the depression. He was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942 at the age of 19 and served three harrowing years during WWII. These experiences shaped him for the rest of his life.
Trained as a radio operator and assigned to a C-47 military transport aircraft, he was first sent to North Africa during Nazi invasion of Italy. His aircraft dropped paratroopers all over Sicily, and he earned the Air Medal for “bravery in the skies over Sicily.” His corps was later based in Sicily and mainland Italy, and finally in England.
Taking part in the D-day invasion, he and his crew barely made it to safety after their plane was hit. He and his crew went on to take part in “Operation Market Garden” in Holland, described in the book and movie “A Bridge too Far.” After the war, Bob and the other four men of his crew remained life-long friends.
With the help of the GI Bill, Bob was able to complete college, go to law school and buy his first home. He practiced law for a short time, but ended up working in insurance for the rest of his career.
Bob loves his family. He was married to his wife Valmere for 50 years, and together they raised four children: Sarah, Martha, Mary and David. He also has four grandchildren, Jessica, Sam, Helen and Brisco, and one great-granddaughter, Sophia. After Val’s death, he married Laura, and after she passed away, Connie, with whom he recently celebrated their 10th anniversary.
Like his father, Bob is a Mason and an active member of his church. He’s a natural athlete — and a music lover, learning to play the trumpet in high school and taking it up again in retirement. An outdoor person, he has always been a keen vegetable gardener, even during the hot summers when he and Val lived in Georgia.
Bob also loves camping, fondly remembering the trips he took every year with his family all over the country. As an avid sports fan, he roots for a number of teams, including the Cubs, who finally won the pennant in 2016. His favorite food, ever since his mother made it when he was a child: Pennsylvania Dutch chicken pot pie.
We are glad that Bob is with us at Caring House. We look forward to caring for this patriot and devoted family man.
In Memoriam
Bob died on February 25, 2018. Honor him. Remember him.