Robert G. Adams

No doubt one of the people waiting up in heaven for Robert “Bob” Glenn Adams was his wife, the love of his life, Debrah Allison Adams. The two met at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, where they had a courtship for the ages, as evidenced by the hundreds of love letters between them. In a letter dated August 9th, 1966, Bob wrote to Deb: “The formality of marriage will but enrich and further our love in that we will be one with God. The next time we face him will be after we have lived full and happy lives together. I love you.” They were married on December 28th, 1968, and were married for 53 years. Deb passed on August 19th, 2022.

Born February 21st, 1945, Bob was the second son of Albert and Lois Adams. He spent much of his early childhood on the Menominee reservation with his brother, Dave, his dad, and grandmother. Even as a child, he loved being outdoors— hiking, camping, fly fishing. It is no surprise that the call of the wild took Bob and Deb west, to the mountains.

After graduating college in 1967, Bob began his career, his first and only job after college, with the Social Security Administration. The job allowed him to transfer all over the United States— and the Adams family did just that. They moved from Colorado, where they had their two children, Kristin and Jennifer, to Utah, to the Dakotas, before landing in Wisconsin, where they would put down roots. Kristin and Jennifer both married, Jenny to Chris Buckley in 1997, and Kristin to Derrick Burbul, in 2002. They had eight grandchildren— Savanna, Saige, Solana, Saffia, Noah, Cooper, Anna, Cambrie, and Cadence.

Back in the day, Bob was an avid runner, competing in marathons, and other runs. His short shorts and matching sweat band were slick, even by today’s standards. He greatly enjoyed running, and when his knees got bad, he enjoyed biking. After his biking days were over, he enjoyed walking, because, well, if you don’t move, you’re going to lose it. And he always kept moving.

Bob was also an avid sewer. He worked faithfully with the Days for Girls team at his church to help make reusable feminine hygiene kits used and distributed by his sister church in El Salvador, Fe y Esperanza (Faith and Hope), in the small community of Los Heroes. These kits helped girls stay in school on their periods. Bob sewed hundreds. He taught people in Los Heroes how to make the pads, too. In 2001, he even drove all the way down to El Salvador to bring pedal sewing machines.

Bob had many hobbies and gifts, too many to name. He was a mean cribbage player, he made the best cookies, built the best fires, told great bedtime stories, and could fix just about anything, even things that couldn’t really be fixed.

Bob also never met a dog he didn’t like, and, as he aged, he softened towards cats as well. He left behind two cats: Hart (for Amelia Earhart) and Starr (for Bart Starr). They were two of his closest companions in the last few years of his life. Starr crossed the rainbow bridge on 12/24/2025. Bob passed his love of all animals to his kids and grandkids.

Bob and Deb were also avid travelers. They traveled all over the world, with each other, and with their friends and family. Whether it was within the United States, across the pond in Europe, or in Central America, they were open to adventure anywhere and everywhere.

Bob and Deb were faithful, churchgoing people, no matter where they went. They made a great number of friends through church, and were always very active in their communities. Bob even acted as a secretary at French River Lutheran Church in Duluth, MN, where they lived for many years. Although they traveled all over, Deb was called to serve in El Salvador, where Bob followed, for 20+ years. They were accompanied by many— friends, kids, grandkids, and especially his brother and sister in Christ, Tim and Linda Muth. There they also met Dr. Lidixe Montoya, who became a daughter to them, and is now a minister in the United States. She has two sons who Bob and Deb adored, Pavel and Andrey.

In El Salvador, Bob is known as Beto, and will be missed by many. He taught many men about the importance of prostate health. Schedule a DRE in his honor! He also acted as a pharmacy tech, and did just about anything he could to help out. Being caring came easy to Bob. With the funds from Deb’s funeral, her dream of having a clinic in Los Heroes came true. They served there for over 20 years. The clinic opened in February of 2025.

If you never met Bob, it was because he likely didn’t see you. He had the gift of gab. He would walk into any room and talk to any person. He remembered names, and made sure everyone felt welcome, even after Deb passed, and he became more of a home body.

One of Deb’s favorite bible verses was 2 Timothy 4:21. “Do your best to come before winter.” Bob’s family understood this verse well. Life is hard alone, but everyone did their best to be there for Bob. He was beloved by family, friends, and neighbors. The lesson here— don’t wait. Love people today. Time is a thief, and Bob was gone in the blink of an eye. We will always miss our beloved father, Bopa, Bob, Beto, Robert.

Please come celebrate and remember Bob with us at 1pm on Saturday, January 3rd, at Hope Lutheran Church in Eau Claire. Food will follow. Bob was not a huge fan of flowers, please instead support his and Deb’s missions in El Salvador— checks can be brought to the funeral or mailed to All People’s Church, PO Box 12044, Milwaukee, WI, 53212.

Bob was also preceded in death by his father Albert, and mother Lois, as well as his stepdads Don Martin and Austin Ordins. He is survived by his brother Dave, and his children and grandchildren.