We are sad to announce the death of Robert L. (Bob, Bobby, Coach, UBob, Gramps, The Geezer) Sierer, aged 90, who died on December 4, 2024, in Wilmington, DE. Bob is survived by his daughters Libby Craig of The Woodlands, TX, Patricia Hensey of Wilmington, DE, Susan Sobocinski and husband Rick of Newark, DE; step-son Chuck Haupt and wife Mary of Owego, NY, step-daughter Linda Haupt of Fort Collins, CO; grandchildren Ryan Craig, Taylor Craig, Kelsey Moragas, Larn Hensey, Shannon Fortmann, Nicholas Sobocinski and Samantha Sobocinski, and 5 great grandchildren. He is predeceased by his first wife Leda Erdman Sierer, and second wife Josephine Haupt Sierer.
Bobby was one of 9 children from Wiconisco, PA where, as a teen, he played many sports, but distinguished himself at Lykens High School in football, and went on to play at Bucknell University. The “Lykens Lightning” married his high school sweetheart Leda after college and moved to Wilmington where Bob became a teacher and the head football coach at A.I. DuPont High School, a position he held for 20 years. Coach Sierer had many successful seasons, conference championships, and successfully coached the underdog Blues to a win over the favored Golds in the 1968 All-Star game. He led the A.I. ski team, assisted with wrestling, and could also be found on the back of a donkey playing basketball for charity. Coach believed that athletics develop the total person to become all that he is capable of, and teaches lessons in citizenship and democracy, and also having fun! He was a favorite teacher and later in life would run into former students all over the country.
Eventually, UBob moved to Goldey Beacom College where he ran an economic development program, assisted with foreign students studying in the U.S., and secured money for the college’s endowment and programs. His favorite role remained interacting with students. UBob was an avid reader, writer, orator and Uno Card player, and as UBob morphed into Gramps, he applied all of these skills to schooling his grandchildren in the ways of the world, talking to them about his life lessons and pushing them to think deeper about themselves. Sometimes that meant cheating at Uno, embellishing a story or speaking in PA Dutch.
After retiring and the death of his first wife, Gramps moved to Maine and married Jaye Haupt. Families were blended, new and old friends mingled – a 70-year-old man married an 80-year-old woman, and for 18 years those in their orbit enjoyed the benefits of being a part of The Geezer’s world. Port Clyde Baptist Church, Marshall Point Lighthouse and Bartlett Woods all embraced the Geezer as he embraced them. He liked to “think deep,” in the words of his step-daughter, and he generated many writings on history, theology, family and love – often on the backs of napkins and decorated with a Kilroy, (IYKYK!). But he could also b.s. with the best of them, make you laugh till you cried, or challenge you to really think, so you never knew what was coming. Though he lived far from his family in the later years of his life, they never questioned his love for them and how much they were cherished. Each of his daughters thought they were his favorite! The following was taken from a newsletter piece he wrote a few years ago:
“All things are transient on this earth, be it power, glory, wealth, and even entire civilizations. All we can do is put all our love into our lives and into our families, making a work of art of the few precious years that are granted to us. This is the lesson I learned as a young boy, and I hope to leave some meaningful recollections to my children and grandchildren. My hope is that each of us will leave a few specks of dust in our family attics.”
Bob left everyone with a very dusty attic. He is very much missed.
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