Robert Wecker

Robert Carl Wecker, 84, passed away peacefully at home the evening of Wednesday November 16th, with his wife of 61 years, Virginia Lou at his bedside.

Bob was born in 1938 in East Carondelet, Illinois as the second of six children (four boys and two girls) and the entire family moved frequently due to their father Lawrence’s work. Bob attended a number of schools, ultimately graduating from Washington High School in Washington, Missouri 1956. That fall Bob moved to Columbia to attend Mizzou. During this time he worked as a desk clerk and auditor at the Daniel Boone Hotel, where he met such period notables as Eleanor Roosevelt, Harry Truman and Helen Keller. Another significant encounter was his future wife Ginger Wyman, who was completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. They were married in June 1961.

In fall 1961 he was drafted into the Army and basic training was at Fort Leonard Wood. In January 1962 he was posted to Fort MacArthur in San Pedro, where he was assigned to Stars and Stripes. Mustering out as a 2nd Lieutenant, he and Ginger relocated to Cape Girardeau, Missouri where they welcomed their first child Patrick, as Bob completed his undergrad. The young couple and their infant son then moved back to Columbia where he completed his Master’s in Business Administration in 1967.

Upon graduation, they returned to San Pedro where he began a career with the City of Los Angeles, first in Parks & Recreation, and thereafter in the Department of Public Works, from which he retired in 2002 as the assistant personnel director.

Bob & Ginger welcomed their second and third children, Christian and Elizabeth, and moved into their forever home on Memorial Day 1971. Bob loved being settled, and ever enjoyed opening his home to family and friends.

Bob had a keen eye for beauty and design, cultivated from a young age and manifested by his deep interest in antiques. He and the family often spent Saturdays going to antique shops, and later (indeed up until the last month of his life) he attended the Long Beach antique swap meet, where he had many friends and acquaintances among the dealers. His knowledge of the provenance and history of antiques and collectibles, especially silver and jewelry, was encyclopedic.

He is survived today by his loving wife Ginger, his devoted children Pat, Chris (Inga) & Beth Martins (Rodrigo), and his grandchildren Sean, Rachael, Nathan, Ian, Gabriel, Julia, Victoria, Van, and Svea, and siblings Bonnie (John) and LouAnn, as well as an extended network of in-laws, nieces and nephews.

A funeral mass will be held at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in San Pedro, at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday November 22nd. A brief graveside service will follow at Green Hills Memorial Park in Rancho Palos Verdes.