Robert N. PATTILLO

6 JAN 1929 - 15 NOV 2021

• BIRTH: 6 JAN 1929, Birmingham, Jefferson, Alabama
• DEATH: 15 NOV 2021, Heartland Hospice, Mishawaka, IN

• MARRIAGE: 29 MAY 1955, St Joseph County, IN

INDEX

[N30292] Robert N. Pattillo
January 6, 1929 ~ November 15, 2021 (age 92)

Robert N. Pattillo, 92, departed this earthly orb at 2:00am on Monday, November 15, 2021. Bob was born January 6, 1929, in Birmingham, AL, to Clarence John and Vernie Lee (Wilhoit) Pattillo. Bob was a 1949 graduate of Auburn University, where he achieved membership in the Phi Kappa Phi scholastic fraternity and earned a Bachelor of Science degree. After graduation, he became a staff announcer at WHSY in Hattiesburg, MS. His radio career was interrupted by the Korean War, as Bob was called to active duty as a member of the US Air Force Reserve. He then returned to WHSY, where he was promoted to chief announcer. Bob moved to the South Bend area in 1953 to assume the duties as one of the pioneer announcers for WSBT - TV, which had just gone on the air on the third floor of the Tribune building. “Those were exciting times,” Bob recalled. “Everything was live. Videotape had not yet been invented, and many times we made it up as we went along.” This is where Bob met the true love of his life and best friend, Sandra K. Smith. After leaving WSBT, he spent three years with Associates Discount Corporation in Niles, MI. He then was employed for over three years by the Ball Band plant of the US Rubber Co. in Mishawaka as Supervisor of Public and Employee Relations. During that time, Bob cut his journalistic teeth as the editor of The Red Ball, the plant’s employee magazine. In 1963, Bob joined Miles Laboratories in Elkhart, IN, rising to the position of Public Relations Administrator. One of his chief responsibilities during his first ten years was editing and writing the company magazine, The Alkalizer. Bob retired in 1985. Tennis was Bob’s game, and he was very good at it. He won numerous tournaments over the years, including four South Bend Metro Open singles titles. A point of pride with him was that he played on Auburn’s very first tennis team (1946-1949). Bob was no stranger to the footlights either. He liked to sing and act and appeared in a number of Presbyterian Players musical productions as well as the South Bend Civic Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It”. For over 25 years, Bob also performed in the South Bend Press Club’s satirical skits in its annual Gridiron Show, or Hoaxes, as it was called. Blessed with a great sense of humor, Bob reveled in making people laugh. He always had a joke or witticism for every occasion.Most of all, Bob loved his family. Preceding him in death were his parents; his son, David Pattillo; brother, Jack (Barbara) Pattillo; and sister, June (Jack) Posey. Surviving are his wife of 66 years, Sandra (Sandy); daughter, Caryn Paige (Ron) Egierski; granddaughters, Amber (Riley) Smith and Chelsea (Taggart) James; and great granddaughter, Veronica Paige Smith; as well as his brother, John (Nelda) Pattillo of Tampa, FL; and numerous nieces and nephews. Additionally, two great grandsons are on the way. Sandy and the family would like to thank the staff from Heartland Hospice for the loving care they provided, as well as to the staff at Grand Emerald Place, where Bob resided the past five months. Friends may visit with the family from 10:00am-12:00pm on Tuesday, November 23, 2021, at Palmer Funeral Home - Hickey Chapel, 17131 Cleveland Road, South Bend. The family requests that masks be worn, except for those who have been fully vaccinated. In lieu of flowers, donations in Bob’s memory may be made to Heartland Hospice, 230 W. Catalpa Drive, Mishawaka, IN 46545 or to the charity of the donor’s choice. Online condolences may be left for the Pattillo family at www.palmerfuneralhomes.com.