Robert Lawrence Zeller

Robert “Bob” Zeller, age 92 years, of south Toledo, passed away peacefully on Saturday, October 17, 2015, at The Lakes of Monclova. Bob was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1923. He grew up during the Great Depression, and his experiences during that time shaped him and taught him lessons in frugality and the importance of family that would serve him for the rest of his life. In 1941, a few months before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Bob graduated from Macomber High School in Toledo, Ohio. In 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps out a love for his country and an enthusiasm for flying he had developed watching airplanes as a child. Despite several very close calls, Bob flew 18 missions in B-24 Liberators over Germany as a radio operator and bombardier. In November of 1944, during his 18th mission, his plane was shot down over Germany. His pilot managed to navigate the plane into a farmer’s field in France before it crashed. Although several crew members died, Bob survived, despite a broken neck, a shattered arm, and other injuries. He spent 12 months in the hospital recovering. Bob was awarded a Purple Heart, an Air Medal, two Oak Leaf Clusters, a European Theater of Operations battle star, a good conduct medal, a WWII victory medal, and two major battle stars. When Bob returned from the War, he married his sunshine, Antoinette “Toni” Zeller, in October 1945. He worked for IBM for 32 years as a Senior Customer Engineer and retired in 1982. He loved his job and interacting with his customers. Due to his many close brushes with death, Bob lived his life with a rare optimism and appreciation and enjoyed sharing his wonderful sense of humor with others. He loved spending time with his wife, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. His family was always his first priority. Bob’s proudest accomplishment was his 65-year marriage to Toni. Leading up to Toni’s death in 2010, Bob lived his love for her and cared for her selflessly and with his typical positive outlook. Bob loved his family, his country, corny jokes, piping hot coffee (especially with his friends at Panera Bread), fishing, singing old country songs, competing with his neighbors for “biggest tomato,” and every dog he ever met. He could fix anything, and spent hours on woodworking projects which he proudly displayed and shared with his family. Bob openly discussed his experiences in WWII and regularly shared his story with local students studying the War. Bob was a member of VFW Post 1115, Disabled American Veterans, The Eighth Air Force Historical Society (Savannah), the Kassel Mission Historical Society, the American Air Museum in Britain, the National WWII Museum (New Orleans and Washington D.C.), the Mighty 8th Air Historical Society (St. Paul), and the Southside Sportsman Club. Bob is preceded in death by his wife, Toni; his parents, Leo and Ethel; his sisters, Virginia and Pauline; his brother, Donald; and his grandson, Alaric Zeller. Bob is survived by his four loving children, Robert (Mary Beth) Zeller, Gregory (Denise) Zeller, Rita Fournier, Julie (Don) Coletta; grandchildren, David Zeller, Michael R. Zeller, Michael J. Zeller, Patty Zeller, Cheryl Zeller, Geoffrey (Polly) Zeller, Jillian Fournier, Jennifer (Matt) McHugh; great-grandchildren, Peyton Hary, Bentley Zeller, Addison Zeller, Andrew Zeller, Zofia Zeller, and Daniel McHugh; sister, Rose (Tom) Taylor; brothers-in-law, Pasquale DiTerlizzi and John Grigore; and many nieces and nephews. Friends may visit at the Coyle Funeral Home, 1770 S Reynolds Rd., on Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p .m., where a scripture service will begin at 7:00 p.m. Funeral services will begin in the mortuary on Thursday, Oct. 22, at 9:30 a.m., followed by the Funeral Mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church at 10:00 a.m. The Committal Service will follow at Highland Memory Gardens Cemetery, Waterville, Ohio. Memorial contributions may be made to VFW Post 6170 in Perrysburg, Ohio, or to The National Museum of The Mighty Eighth Air Force in Savannah, Georgia. Bob’s family would like to sincerely thank Heartland Hospice for their expertise and compassion in his final days and the caretakers at The Lakes of Monclova for taking such good care of him for the last seven months, and for their efforts to get to know him so well.

Tributes

Robert Lawrence Zeller

February 10, 1923 - October 17, 2015