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Thon, Robert 'Bob' J.
Robert “Bob” J. Thon, 70, died Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012, at 5:03 a.m. at the Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy in Hiawatha following an extended illness. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 20, at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Urbana with Father Ardel Barta as celebrant. Visitation also will be held at the church from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday with a prayer service beginning at 7 p.m. Interment will be held at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery near Urbana.
Robert was born Dec. 31, 1941, in Langdon, N.D., to Julius and Katherine (Koehn) Thon and graduated from the Langdon High School in 1959. He received his electrical and electronic engineering degree from North Dakota State University. He served his nation in the North Dakota Air National Guard and was a radar technician for several different fighter airplanes.
Robert was employed as an electrical engineer at Rockwell Collins where he was named as Engineer of the Year, developed multiple patents for innovative engineering designs, and was awarded the AFCEA Sam Hanna Award for excellence. He held a professional engineering (PE) license. A member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Urbana, he enjoyed membership in the Knights of Columbus.
On May 16, 1964, he was united in marriage to Ellen May at Breckenridge, Minn.
Robert is survived by his wife, Ellen of Center Point; his daughters, Cynthia (Mark) Brown of Carlisle, Pa., Laura (Christopher) Taylor of Fishers, Ind., and Colleen (Douglas) Soultz of Bettendorf; nine grandchildren, Donovan, Rebecca and Kaitlin Brown, Zachary, and Madison Taylor, and Cody, Ashlee, Joshua, and Nicholas Soultz; and his brothers, Thomas (Verna) Thon and Michael (Vickie) Thon, all of Yankton, S.D., and Patrick Thon of Marion.
He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial fund has been established for the Hospice House of Mercy in Hiawatha.
Phillips Funeral Home in Vinton is in charge of arrangements and condolences may be left at:
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Published Oct. 19, 2012 in The Gazette
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