Robert Lee Dolbear Sr., 104, of Dallas, passed away Friday, Oct. 2, 2020, at the Village at Greenbriar, Dallas.
Bob was born Dec. 7, 1915, son of the late Frank and Jane Wall Dolbear.
Bob graduated from Plains High School in 1933, Mansfield College in 1938 with a Bachelor of Science degree in education, and Bucknell in 1950 with a master’s degree in education.
Bob taught physical education at Dallas Twp. High School and Dallas Area School District from 1938 to 1960. He coached football, basketball and baseball at Dallas Twp. from 1940 to 1950. He coached the first football game for the old shoe in 1948. When told he needed a shoe to be bronzed, he grabbed a shoe from the pile not knowing whose it was.
From 1960 to 1962, Bob was the driver training instructor at Dallas Senior High School. He was assistant principal at Dallas High School from 1962 to 1968 becoming principal in 1968 until his retirement in 1978.
Bob was drafted in the Army the summer of 1942. (The school board got a deferment for Bob so he could coach the last football game which was on Thanksgiving Day against Kingston Twp.) He entered the service the next day. Knowing he was a teacher, he was immediately made corporal and was given the assignment of teaching 200 young boys from Tennessee and Kentucky how to write their name so they could sign for their pay. Not wanting to go to Officers Training, he was given the option of becoming a cryptographer at the World Headquarters for Communications at Asheville, N.C.. The first message he decoded was from General Eisenhower to President Roosevelt.
While in the service, he married 2nd Lt. Antonia Kozemchak in January 1944 at Ft Oglethorp, Ga. (They were engaged before they entered the service.) They had 64 years of marriage until her passing in 2007.
He was honorably discharged as part of the Air Force on Dec. 23, 1945, with the rank of staff sergeant. He received the American Campaign Medal, Good Conduct Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.
He was a member of the PSEA and NEA, Luzerne County Retired Teachers, Dallas Kiwanis and George M. Dallas Lodge No.531.
Bob was very active in Kiwanis for almost 60 years, being president in 1965. In 2007, he was honored by having the annual Senior Girls All Star Softball Tournament renamed the Robert Dolbear All Star Softball Tournament. Bob and his best friend, the late George McCutcheon, initiated the tournament in 1978 and were co-chairmen for 25 years. In 2012, Bob received the Kiwanis Legion of Honor and a citation from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives honoring him for his 60 years of service with Kiwanis.
Bob was also a member of the Shavertown United Methodist Church, serving on the board of directors in the 1960s.
Preceding him in death were his wife, Antonia (Toni) K. Dolbear; son, Robert L. Dolbear Jr.; son-in-law, Robert J. Williams Sr.; sisters, Emma, Sarah, Cora and Jenny; and brothers, Frank and George.
He is survived by his daughter, Gloria D. Williams, Trucksville; grandsons, Jeffrey Miller and wife Becky, Shavertown; Brian Miller and wife, Catherine, Ft. Collins, Colo.; Jonathan Dolbear and wife, Aubrey, Philadelphia. Also surviving are great-grandsons, Logan, Joe and Brandon Miller, Shavertown; Nathaniel
Miller, Ft Collins, Colo.; and great-granddaughters, Lily Marie and Maisie Rose Dolbear, Philadelphia; plus many nieces and nephews.
The family would like to thank the entire staff at The Villages at Greenbriar for the excellent care they provided for Dad. They were his extended family!! Their care went above and beyond! Remember, detention if you don’t behave or are late!!! A huge thank you to the staff of Sacred Heart Hospice for their compassionate care and being with him through his end-of-life journey.