Robert Grant "Bob" Gabbard Obituary
August 30, 2024
Robert Grant “Bob” Gabbard was born in Jackson County on May 4, 1939 and departed this life July 26, 2024 in Belle Fourche, South Dakota
Bob was born to Isaac (Ike) Gabbard and Madge (Webb) Gabbard and they precede him in death. He was also preceded in death by his brothers and sisters; Lucille, Leona, Truman, Nadine and Toney as well as his grandparents Sid and Bessie Webb (Farmer).
He is survived by his son Chris Gabbard and grandson, Evin Gabbard (the apple of his eye).
He is also survived by his half-sisters; Kay Bowles, Linda Pelley and Eleanor Johns who will miss him dearly.
Bob was a civil engineer, a geologist, an pilot, flying instructor, and National Guard Veteran. He used his knowledge an talents to the benefit of Jackson County spending countless hours on the design and construction of the Jackson County Veteran’s Memorial and the connecter train to the Sheltowee Trace, helping to earn McKee the designation of Trail Town. He served on the McKee City Council as well as on the board of the Jackson County Development Association, earning that organizations “Citizen of the Year” award in 2015 for all his efforts giving back to his community.
Bob grew up in Lee and Jackson Counties, attending local schools in Mt Eagle, McKee, and
Annville before transferring to Reese Academy for advanced students in Lexington where he
received his high school diploma in 1957. And in 1960 he graduated from the Colorado School
of Mines with a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. During his college years, he earned a
private pilot’s license and taught flying as a means of income. After graduation Bob taught
flying in California before enlisting in the National Guard, serving in Alaska. He then worked
briefly in Canada and Alaska as a commercial pilot before enrolling in the master’s program in
geology at the University of California at Davis. He completed this program in 1967.
And then it was on to Texas, where Bob started and ran a construction company for 26 years. In
1993, he sold his company to his employees and set off to see the world. He joined a group of
scientists, as lead geologist, hired by a consortium of Canadian and American museums to find
and collect fossils from all over the world. Their travels took them to Mongolia, Russia,
Argentina, Africa, and China, as well as the US and Canada. His most recent project had him turning his talents and expertise to a project in South Dakota, involving an old gold mine, an underground laboratory, and the search for neutrinos.
If anyone ever led a storied life it was Bob Gabbard. He earned the respect of the Jackson County Community and the love of many of its people.
Bob was cremated and his ashes will be scattered in several undisclosed locations by his son Chris and grandson Evin, per his last wishes.
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