Robert Edmund Eatock

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Robert Edmund Eatock, 86, died May 22, 2020, at Ramsey Village Care Center in Des Moines, Iowa. He was born Aug. 27, 1933, in Centerville, Iowa, the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Todavich) Eatock.

Bob graduated from Centerville High School in 1952, then attended Centerville Junior College. He continued his education at Northeast Missouri State University in Kirksville, earning both a bachelor of science degree in education and a master’s degree in school administration. He was a member of the Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity.

Bob’s first teaching position was sixth grade in Mexico, where he met his wife, Carolyn Fennewald. Over the years he served as a school principal in Brunswick; Bridgewater-Fontanelle, Iowa; El Paso, Ill.; and at John Glenn Elementary School in St. Joseph. He last taught in the Kansas City school district before he retired.

On Aug. 20, 1960, Bob married Carolyn at St. Brendan Catholic Church in Mexico. They had two children, Deborah Anne, and Christopher Robert.

Carol and Bob lived in St. Joe from 1975 until November 2018, when declining health prompted them to move to West Des Moines, Iowa, to live with their daughter, Deb, and her husband, Dan Belt.

While they lived in St. Joseph, Bob and Carol were members first of the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph-Kansas City parish and for the last 20 years were members of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in St. Joseph, where Bob was a member of the Knights of Columbus.

Bob enjoyed watching St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals baseball games, and Kansas City Chiefs football games; was a fan of Stephen King and Robin Cook novels; and enjoyed music and musical theater. He suffered from dementia in recent years, but Carol was a devoted caregiver.

Bob is survived by a daughter, Deb and Dan Belt of West Des Moines, Iowa; a son, Chris Eatock and wife, Pamela Olson, of Phoenix, Ariz.; a sister, Carol Casteel and husband Donnie Casteel of Centerville, Iowa, and a brother, Jack Strobel and wife, Eleanore, of Newton, Iowa; sisters-in-law Shirley Fennewald of Mexico; Rose Leighton of Columbia, Joan and Ken Settle of Appleton, Wis., and Jane Miller of Wentzville, plus many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Carolyn, his parents; brothers-in-law Hub Fennewald, Charles Fennewald Jr., Joseph Fennewald, Gus Fennewald, Daniel Fennewald, Bernard Albus, John Freeman, Sam Leighton, Ned Dermody and Rich Miller; and sisters-in-law Dorothy Albus, Martha Dermody, Florence Fennewald, Jacque Fennewald, Ann Fennewald, Marilyn Fennewald and Catherine Freeman of Bradenton, Fla..

Funeral arrangements were handled by Arnold Funeral Home in Mexico. A funeral mass was held June 22, 2020, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Centerville, Iowa. Bob's ashes will be interred at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 24, at St. Brendan Cemetery in Mexico.

Memorials may be made in care of the family: 940 Fourth Street, West Des Moines, IA 50265.


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