Hi everyone, first - thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts; it may not always seem like it but one of the goals of this forum is to create a sense of 'community'. It's great that Rob found a place here and that all of you came to appreciate what he brought to us with his personality and photos. We're hoping to contact Rob's family/friends and share this thread with them so they can see how many lives he touched, even though he never met some in person.

 

Also, the Admins agree that it's only appropriate that Rob be honored for his contributions - it may take some time, so please bear with us. Thanks again.

Sad, sad news.  He will be greatly missed. 

Oh no :(

Rest in peace, dear Robert

 

Damn. Rest In Peace. I also enjoyed reading his insights and seeing his photography throughout the later half of the 20th century.

So sorry to hear this.  Met Rob a few times on the Urban Ohio meets and will miss his posts.

- Dan

Never met him, but I can tell he was a helluva guy. You can tell how much he meant based on this community alone. And most of us never met him.

Very saddened to hear of Rob's passing.  I too felt like I "knew" Robert through his postings on UO, and I always appreciated the wisdom he brought to this forum.  I'll miss his commentary on the things that were important to him and the sense of historical perspective he often provided.  And of course I'll miss his photos, with his (exceptionally distinct and neat) hand written captions. 

 

You are missed, Robert.

 

Thanks Rob for all your kindness

 

:cry:

I was on vacation in Florida when I received news of his passing.  Rob was one of the first members of this website and I believe he was the first non-Ohioan (even before he joined SkyscraperPage).  I'll never forget the first time I met him at one of the UO meets and he was one of THE most knowledgeable, kind, and passionate individuals I've ever met in life.  He attended almost every UO meet we've had (Cleveland subways, Dayton, Columbus, etc) and always had a smile on his face and a large camera.  To say he's a forum icon is like saying water flows from Niagara Falls.  Rob was the very essence of this website.  I am beyond sad at his passing yet I'm so happy for his suffering with cancer is now over.

 

May he rest in peace and hopefully we'll reflect on the absolutely wonderful life he lived.

It's unanimous, Robert Pence was a special person.

 

My contact with Rob was much like anyone else's, some discussion on the forums and some chats through personal messages.  Although I have never met him, his sincerity, warmth and depth left a firm imprint.  Rob and I had a common interest in bicycles, this year he very graciously sent me a book on the subject.  Looking back, I was unaware of his struggles with disease and feel a little bit guilty.

 

RIP, to a GREAT man!

Just saw this! What a great guy! So sorry to hear this.....

Oh no. Just saw this as well. I was offline for much of december as I had foot surgery. So sad to hear of his passing. He was such a smart and amazing man and fantastic contributor to our UO community. May he rest in peace.

Robert wrote with such intensity and passion on subjects like history and travel that he loved so much.  He certainly was a kind person.  I hope his family members get to read this thread and see how much we appreciated him.  I hope he went peacefully.

I just caught this...he was able to show exactly how I felt about the world- cities, the country, rail into some amazing photographs. He will be missed. :-(

Even though I am late to this discussion, I feel I should comment. I just found out today about Bob dying. It didn't surprise me to come across this news, but it still hit me with a jolt. I knew Bob Pence from my years living in Fort Wayne. For most of my seven years there, I lived in West Central, which was his neighborhood and one of the best neighborhoods anywhere. Bob was the kind of person who was always present when I was talking with him, and I always appreciated his including me in his various photo documentation projects. I'm sad that I'll never see him again and am glad to have known him. His death is certainly a loss for the UO World, which reminds me that once, while chatting with Bob at one of the annual Gay Lesbian Dinner Dances in Fort Wayne, I asked him for some photography advice. One thing he told was that a good thing to keep in mind when taking pictures is what you want the pictures to accomplish. Because he knew I was living in Cleveland, he suggested I consider the work of MayDay as something to aspire to.

Thank you, Vince - that's incredibly humbling.

I felt the need to bump this thread. Sadly, Robert's website has gone away. His vintage color photos of Cleveland were a source of utter fascination for me. Let's not forget him.

Hi everyone, first - thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts; it may not always seem like it but one of the goals of this forum is to create a sense of 'community'. It's great that Rob found a place here and that all of you came to appreciate what he brought to us with his personality and photos. We're hoping to contact Rob's family/friends and share this thread with them so they can see how many lives he touched, even though he never met some in person.

 

Also, the Admins agree that it's only appropriate that Rob be honored for his contributions - it may take some time, so please bear with us. Thanks again.

 

Any plans with a way to honor Rob?  Annual photo contest in his name?

Thats a good idea

I was randomly searching for Rob's website, and came across this sad news. He was an expert on the Maumee Valley and his insights into the history of urban areas and rail transit in the Midwest were perfect for this forum. I loved talking photography with him and no doubt his presence is missed on here. He was a true gentleman who contributed excellent photographs and stories to the forum. RIP, Rob, and thank you for always being great.

 

I do think we should have an annual photo contest in his memory.

Has there been in final word as to how UO will Honor Rob.  I know I spoke with MayDay and gave suggestion.

+1

Wow, I will miss his photojournalism and knowledge.  Hopefully if there is some type of contest in his honor his family is notified about it.

I haven't been visiting this board very often over the last couple of years.  Tonight I thought I would look and see what Mr. Pence had been up to as I always enjoyed his photos and comments.  For someone that I had never met and had only exchanged a few e-mails with, I feel a real sense of loss with his passing.  Obviously he made a good impression here and in the world.  He will certainly be missed.

I just happened across this online.  What a great guy.  From March of this year-

 

ACRES Receives Surprise $1 Million Gift

By Sean Bueter

4:45 pm

Thu March 12, 2015

 

ACRES Land Trust announced this week it received a surprise gift of one million dollars from the estate of a Fort Wayne man.

 

The trust was founded in 1960 with a mission to acquire land to create nature preserves.

 

The bequest comes from the estate of Robert E. Pence, a former tool maker, computer technician, and lifelong nature enthusiast. Pence died in 2012.

 

http://wboi.org/post/acres-receives-surprise-1-million-gift

 

Once or twice I recall reading a post by Robert where he was talking about his relatives and his money after he dies. Guess he took well of enough care of that.

Wow! A nature enthusiast and an urban-grit enthusiast! Rob is dead! Long live Rob!

He was a wonderful person and his acts of kindness still live on.

nice catch -- thanks for posting it. wow in yet another sense rob lives on forever. why am i not surprised about this. how wonderful.

I miss Rob. I miss him a lot. But this makes me happy. I always remember him talking about where his money will go, and this does not surprise me.

I just happened across this online.  What a great guy.  From March of this year-

 

ACRES Receives Surprise $1 Million Gift

By Sean Bueter

4:45 pm

Thu March 12, 2015

 

ACRES Land Trust announced this week it received a surprise gift of one million dollars from the estate of a Fort Wayne man.

 

The trust was founded in 1960 with a mission to acquire land to create nature preserves.

 

The bequest comes from the estate of Robert E. Pence, a former tool maker, computer technician, and lifelong nature enthusiast. Pence died in 2012.

 

http://wboi.org/post/acres-receives-surprise-1-million-gift

 

 

Wow, that was a belated surprise! Rob came to several events hosted by All Aboard Ohio, so he was very involved in all sorts of nonprofit organizations.

 

I miss his dry, dark sense of humor.

Bump for OG Robert Pence

Never met him but I thought about him recently and his reports on the car wrecks in front of his house!

On 5/25/2015 at 12:46 AM, Confiteordeo said:

I just happened across this online.  What a great guy.  From March of this year-

 

ACRES Receives Surprise $1 Million Gift

By Sean Bueter

4:45 pm

Thu March 12, 2015

 

ACRES Land Trust announced this week it received a surprise gift of one million dollars from the estate of a Fort Wayne man.

 

The trust was founded in 1960 with a mission to acquire land to create nature preserves.

 

The bequest comes from the estate of Robert E. Pence, a former tool maker, computer technician, and lifelong nature enthusiast. Pence died in 2012.

 

http://wboi.org/post/acres-receives-surprise-1-million-gift

 

Wow! I never saw this post. What a generous, selfless human. Let's be real, a lot of people in his age group with no kids would have been living it up on the beach in his position with his net worth on top of working until his death. He always showed a lot of pictures of his really nice but extremely modest home and clearly lived well below his means. 

Rob was a genuinely good, kind-hearted person with a great sense of humor. I remember occasions where I'd crack like, gay jokes or crass jokes and I'd see that he had responded and I'd think "Ohh...crap.. What's he going to say? Did I offend him? Then I'd find out he'd just responded with laughing emojis lol. 

I admired him a lot for his outlook on life, interesting thoughts and wisdom, positive attitude and comedy. The world would be a much better place if there were more people like him. 

You're sorely missed, Rob. RIP.

Hey maybe its the late night bourbon talking, but what if we started a fund in his honor to promote photography?

 

It could go towards a wide variety of sources; sponsoring photographic exhibits, providing scholarships for college photography and arts programs, or even just a photographic history exhibit would be a great way to remember his contributions.

I miss Robert. I look every time I see this thread bumped up. He and I shared a common love of steel bikes. He told me a story about a long trip he took on a Raleigh DL-1. For those who don’t recognize the bike by name, that is quite a feat. It is big, heavy, has 3 speeds (not great for hills) and has rod brakes, which only suggest stopping. Robert was a lovely person. He had a way of connecting very personally with strangers over an online forum.

Edited February 21, 20214 yr by mkeller234

If I'm unable to attend this Friday's UO Happy Hour, please raise a glass to the legacy of forumer Robert Pence. He died 11 years ago this Friday. 

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/fortwayne/name/robert-pence-obituary

I still get the e-mails from legacy.com each time there's an anniversary of Robert's passing. Been 12 years. Seems like yesterday. Robert's been gone longer than my son Martin has been alive.