Brown, Robert DeFord

Robert DeFord Brown died peacefully at St. Luke's Hospital on Saturday, June 22, 2013. Services: Wednesday, June 26, 2013, at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids, with the Reverend Ted Miller presiding. Visitation: Tuesday, June 25, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home

Bob was born in Fairfield, Iowa, to Lloyd W. and Blanche DeFord Brown. He moved to Cedar Rapids as a young boy and lived here all his life except for his Air Force years. He attended Coe College and was affiliated with Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. He graduated with a major in physics in 1960 and entered the Air Force ROTC program and served as a Radar Navigator from 1961 to 1965.

Bob and Fran Chaloupka were married on Dec. 27,

1959, at Westminster Church. After his service years, they returned to Cedar Rapids where Bob worked as a quality engineer for Amana and Rockwell.

Bob is survived by his wife, Fran; son, Robert Lloyd Brown, of Khon Kaen, Thailand; daughter, Susan (Peter) DeJong of Grand Rapids, Mich.; grandsons, Eric Robert and Mitchell Peter DeJong; brother, Lloyd W. (Karen) Brown, Jr. of Springfield, Va.; and cousins, Duane (Mary Alyce) Krohnke of Minneapolis, Minn., and Kristi (Dennis) Paxton of Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Online condolences may be directed to under Obituaries.

Published June 23, 2013, in The Gazette