Robert Francis Olsson

Robert "Bob" Olsson (1931-2020) Robert Francis James Olsson was born on January 2, 1931 in Bronx, New York and passed away peacefully on July 10, 2020 in Rochester, New York. He leaves his wife and love of his life, Carol. They were married for 66 years. Also surviving Bob are his children, Karen Schlauraff (Don), Ronald (Kim) Olsson and Gale McHale; grandchildren, Kristie, EmilyKate, Ashley and Zach; brother, Gene (Rita) Olsson, brother-in-law, Jim Vallance, brother-in-law, Robert (Debbie) Margolies; cousins; 9 nieces and 5 nephews; many grand and great-grand nieces and nephews, and friends.



He was preceded in death by his parents, Karl (Charles) and Ethel Buser Olsson; brother, John (Jack) and his spouse Kay (Smith); sister, Dorothy Vallance, and brother-in-law, Ronald Margolies.



Bob proudly served his country in the United States Marine Corps for four years. Before enlisting in the Marines, he started as a water boy at construction sites by the age of 14 and acquired skills in carpentry. After completion of his service to our country, he continued in construction, learned even more about the carpentry trade and became a very skilled carpenter, a trade he remained in until his retirement in the 1990's. He belonged to both the New York City Carpenters' Union and the Suffolk County Carpenters' Union. He always worked hard, earned a reputation for being able to lift more than anyone else at jobsites and was respected by his bosses and colleagues for his abilities and excellent work ethic. He truly helped construct New York City and surrounding areas, from working on many skyscrapers to luxury homes in the Hamptons to homes and apartment buildings for average Americans. He simply loved his profession and shared many stories about his work and his colleagues. He often expressed to those younger that they should follow their passion in work. He did that and made us all proud.



And, what a wonderful, involved Dad he was! As a child, Dad was raised near Pelham Bay and was an avid swimmer, spending as much time at and in the Bay as possible. He also enjoyed fishing, bowling, pool, darts and getting into mischief (mostly with brother, Gene). After marrying Carol ("Bunny" to the family) and having their family, he spent much of his spare time playing with us – whether swimming in the ocean at Long Island beaches or in the pool, building snow forts and having snowball fights, taking us on "adventures" to collect shells, golf balls, clay skeets and other items, playing a wide variety of board games and cards, and teaching us woodworking skills and how to use a variety of tools.



He enjoyed numerous sports, but Dad was particularly an avid baseball and hockey fan. Initially, he was a big fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers. We don't know for sure if he ever transferred his loyalty from them to another team after the Dodgers moved to California. BUT, we do know that when the New York Mets came to town in 1962, Dad was all in. Although he sat there watching them lose game after game (each to the final out), season after season saying, "they stink," we knew he was hoping and waiting for better. In 1969, the Mets made his loyalty shine when they won the World Series. We whole-heartedly celebrated that victory with him.



He recalled how when hockey was televised "back in the day," the players looked so tiny on the TV set and he couldn't even see the puck. Although not sure what hockey teams he rooted for prior to the New York Islanders forming in 1972, we remember well watching the Islanders play and their successes in winning the Stanley Cup on consecutive occasions. But, for us and Dad, it wasn't the "winning" that seemed to matter as much as sharing the victories and losses we witnessed together.



Dad was an animal lover which, truthfully, is an understatement. Our home and yard was inhabited by rabbits, cats, dogs, box turtles, squirrels, raccoons, birds, fish and even a bantam chicken! His only comment to Mom after discovering the chicken wandering around our kitchen that she rescued from a neighbor's dog was, "what am I going to find when I come home tomorrow? An elephant in the garage?" He promptly built a very large cage and put his daughter in charge of its exercise and care. He brought home many stray animals and kindly allowed us to keep those we dragged in, not to mention some brought to us by neighborhood kids.



Dad was always the Marine - tall, strong, disciplined and honest. He was a strict disciplinarian but calm and even-tempered while instilling good morals and teaching us responsibility.



In addition to his other talents, he also had a beautiful tenor voice, singing opera and country tunes in the shower. On weekends, we often awoke to Hank Williams singing "Hey, Good Lookin'", a band playing John Philip Sousa's "The Stars and Stripes Forever" or some other patriotic/military march and so many other genres of music, too many to mention. Between him and our Mom, we all acquired a lifelong love of all types of music for which we are thankful.



Dad was dedicated to our Mom and us. A favorite memory of him and Mom was them dancing in the kitchen – her standing on his feet and them just going around and around. She, at not quite 5'3", and him, at 6'3", made it look quite impressive.



He provided us with so much. One of life's most important lessons he taught and instilled in us was the value and importance of family. He loved his parents dearly and truly loved his siblings, Jack, Gene and Dorothy, often relaying fond memories he shared with them while growing up and beyond. He often told of what a GREAT ballplayer Jack was, how he and Gene spent so much time together at the Bay and even formed a "gang" they named the Water Rats (Dad had a jacket embroidered with the name "Swede") and how enamored he was with baby sister, Dorothy, who could, in his eyes, do no wrong. He loved our extended family and he made certain we saw our relatives often. We are fortunate to have had all of them in our lives, past and present, and it is a testament to his dedication to both his and mom's families. He loved and respected Mom's family and his family equally, never differentiating between the two. They were all his family.



He and Mom had numerous close friends – Steve and Kathy Ziemblicki, Larry (Wink) and Lenore Muse, Elmer and Ann Baumgart, Werner and Diane Nitschke, Bea Zalewitz and Tom and Jean Butler, to name a few. They oftentimes shared 'family times' with their friends, including them so that they also were one with our family.



We will miss him very much. He was, simply put, a good man!



Burial services will be held on Friday, July 17, 2020 at 1:30 pm at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. Those wishing to attend should meet in the Cemetery Office's parking lot by 1:15 pm. We respectfully ask all attending to wear masks in light of the pending health crisis.



In lieu of flowers, those wishing may make a donation in his name to: https://semperfifund.org/donate, ASPCA or a charity of your choice.



Bob's family thanks all of you for being a part of his life and remembering him with the love, honor and respect he earned throughout his life. We are hopeful to, at a later date, hold a memorial service.