BROKEN OAK HILL(R) Dispatches from the heart of Wisconsin Robert Blake DeBaun
Above: Bob stands in front of one of the pine plantations in a late 1970s photo.
Memories we will keep
Time and circumstance -- and a very busy schedule –- had kept our brother, Bob DeBaun, from getting to the tree farm very much in recent years. But even though his visits had become less frequent, Bob and his wife, Jane, had made a few stops at the farm when he was traveling between his home in the Chicago suburbs and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for treatment of his multiple myeloma, which was first diagnosed in 2002. Those visits seemed to have special meaning for him.
On Dec. 29, 2010, Bob lost his battle with cancer at age 60.
Bob – born Robert Blake DeBaun – was someone you can't really describe in words, but as mortals that's what we're left with. He was a husband, a dad, a brother, an uncle, a friend to many.
He was a senior vice president for human resources at RoundTable Healthcare Partners in Lake Forest, Ill., when he died. From the testimonials of the hundreds of people who attended his visitation and funeral service at the Lutheran church to which he belonged, he was a man who
touched many lives, who helped people find jobs and sort out personal problems -- and enjoy their daily lives more than they would have if he had not been there.
Bob was born Aug. 13, 1950, in Topeka, Kan., the third son of Burt and Margaret DeBaun. It couldn’t have been too long before he won the nickname of “Run Run” because he was always on the go, always into things, joking, always trying to keep up with his older brothers, John and Tom.
Bob was heroically successful, professionally and personally -– in his career, in his friendships, in the way he dealt with the multiple myeloma that took his life just after he celebrated his last Christmas with his family. He was and is loved by a line of people that goes out the door and around the block and down the street.
Growing up, we moved a lot because our Dad, a World War II Navy veteran who had served in the Philippines, was working his way up the corporate ladder with International Harvester Company.
Bob and family lived briefly in Topeka before they moved to Prairie Village, Kan. Next was St. Joseph, Mo., where we had a two-acre place that was part mini-farm and part ornamental garden with lots of rock
structures to play on. Less than three years later, when Bob was about 6, another move took the family to Amarillo, where he began school. About three years later, the family moved again, to Western Springs, Ill., where we lived behind some wonderful neighbors, the Mundts. During that time, we started looking at land because the Mundts were buying back-tax property in Juneau and Adams Counties in Wisconsin. It was then that Burt and Margaret scraped up the money to buy our tree farm. After that, the family moved to Overland Park, Kan., for about a year and then back to Amarillo, where Burt was named District Manager for an area that covered the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles and much of eastern New Mexico. It was the pinnacle of his corporate career. Bob became fascinated with the culture and history of the Southwest, and interest that was to stay with him for the rest of his life.
But Bob had just started his sophomore year in high school when our Dad left International Harvester because his career had peaked. I was already in college by then, but Dad moved Margaret, Tom and Bob from Amarillo with a population of well over 100,000 to Osage City, Kan., a town with about 3,000, to buy half interest in a farm equipment store -- obviously a major life change. During his high school years, and even after he left to attend the University of Kansas, Bob worked in the store and learned a lot about management and people in the process from Dad and through his own keen observation skills.
He graduated from Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in 1973 and was also Distinguished Military Graduate in the Army ROTC unit. He earned a master’s degree in labor relations from KU the next year, and that same year he married Jane Lundgren of Osage City. Weeks later he left for military duty in Germany, where he was joined by Jane for a three-year tour. He was Executive Officer and Special Weapons Officer in the 1st Battalion, 94th Field Artillery in Nuremberg, Germany.
He was proud of his service and his family’s record of service: both of his grandfathers had served in the armed forces; his Dad and his brother, Uncle Jean, had served during World War II; he and his two brothers had served during the Vietnam War era; and his nephew Matt is serving today.
When Bob returned to civilian life, he had a solid management background thanks to the combined experiences of working at DeBaun International, being taught by business professors at KU whom he held in high regard, and dealing with the many difficult situations that he confronted while serving in Germany as a lieutenant.
His first job was as an executive at Hallmark Cards, Inc., in Kansas City, a place many people would have been satisfied to spend an entire career. But Bob and Jane relocated to Vernon Hills, Ill., and a job as an executive with American Hospital Supply in Evanston. He later worked for Baxter Healthcare Corp. in Deerfield, Allegiance Healthcare Corp. in McGaw Park, Ill., and Cardinal Healthcare, also in McGaw Park.
It was in 2002 that he joined Roundtable Healthcare Partners as senior vice president for human resources, a place where both his expertise and personality were clearly appreciated.
During his Chicago years, his two children were born, Elizabeth and Robert Blake Jr. After his cancer diagnosis, he was still able to see both of his children graduate from the University of Iowa, and in the fall of 2010 he got to walk Liz down the aisle as she married Jason Pasquinelli.
In his last year, Bob helped as we moved our Mom, Margaret, from Kansas to a senior living facility in Wisconsin and he took a big role in helping get her acclimated to her new surroundings, even as his own health was failing. The drugs that had worked so well in his battle with cancer began to lose their effectiveness, but Bob faced the final chapter with the same strength with which he lived his life, with more concern for others -- particularly Jane and his children who so closely fought his battle with him -- than for himself.
We will miss him, but his smile and sense of humor, his endless energy, his inquisitive and upbeat nature, his organizational skills, his concern for others and his love of family and his spirit live on.
-- John DeBaun
Bob and daughter Liz enjoy a "test drive" on the International Cub at the tree farm.
Time and circumstance -- and a very busy schedule –- had kept our brother, Bob DeBaun, from getting to the tree farm very much in recent years. But even though his visits had become less frequent, Bob and his wife, Jane, had made a few stops at the farm when he was traveling between his home in the Chicago suburbs and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for treatment of his multiple myeloma, which was first diagnosed in 2002. Those visits seemed to have special meaning for him.
On Dec. 29, 2010, Bob lost his battle with cancer at age 60.
Bob – born Robert Blake DeBaun – was someone you can't really describe in words, but as mortals that's what we're left with. He was a husband, a dad, a brother, an uncle, a friend to many.
He was a senior vice president for human resources at RoundTable Healthcare Partners in Lake Forest, Ill., when he died. From the testimonials of the hundreds of people who attended his visitation and funeral service at the Lutheran church to which he belonged, he was a man who
touched many lives, who helped people find jobs and sort out personal problems -- and enjoy their daily lives more than they would have if he had not been there. Bob was born Aug. 13, 1950, in Topeka, Kan., the third son of Burt and Margaret DeBaun. It couldn’t have been too long before he won the nickname of “Run Run” because he was always on the go, always into things, joking, always trying to keep up with his older brothers, John and Tom.
Bob was heroically successful, professionally and personally -– in his career, in his friendships, in the way he dealt with the multiple myeloma that took his life just after he celebrated his last Christmas with his family. He was and is loved by a line of people that goes out the door and around the block and down the street.
Growing up, we moved a lot because our Dad, a World War II Navy veteran who had served in the Philippines, was working his way up the corporate ladder with International Harvester Company.
Bob and family lived briefly in Topeka before they moved to Prairie Village, Kan. Next was St. Joseph, Mo., where we had a two-acre place that was part mini-farm and part ornamental garden with lots of rock
structures to play on. Less than three years later, when Bob was about 6, another move took the family to Amarillo, where he began school. About three years later, the family moved again, to Western Springs, Ill., where we lived behind some wonderful neighbors, the Mundts. During that time, we started looking at land because the Mundts were buying back-tax property in Juneau and Adams Counties in Wisconsin. It was then that Burt and Margaret scraped up the money to buy our tree farm. After that, the family moved to Overland Park, Kan., for about a year and then back to Amarillo, where Burt was named District Manager for an area that covered the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles and much of eastern New Mexico. It was the pinnacle of his corporate career. Bob became fascinated with the culture and history of the Southwest, and interest that was to stay with him for the rest of his life. But Bob had just started his sophomore year in high school when our Dad left International Harvester because his career had peaked. I was already in college by then, but Dad moved Margaret, Tom and Bob from Amarillo with a population of well over 100,000 to Osage City, Kan., a town with about 3,000, to buy half interest in a farm equipment store -- obviously a major life change. During his high school years, and even after he left to attend the University of Kansas, Bob worked in the store and learned a lot about management and people in the process from Dad and through his own keen observation skills.
He graduated from Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in 1973 and was also Distinguished Military Graduate in the Army ROTC unit. He earned a master’s degree in labor relations from KU the next year, and that same year he married Jane Lundgren of Osage City. Weeks later he left for military duty in Germany, where he was joined by Jane for a three-year tour. He was Executive Officer and Special Weapons Officer in the 1st Battalion, 94th Field Artillery in Nuremberg, Germany.
He was proud of his service and his family’s record of service: both of his grandfathers had served in the armed forces; his Dad and his brother, Uncle Jean, had served during World War II; he and his two brothers had served during the Vietnam War era; and his nephew Matt is serving today.
When Bob returned to civilian life, he had a solid management background thanks to the combined experiences of working at DeBaun International, being taught by business professors at KU whom he held in high regard, and dealing with the many difficult situations that he confronted while serving in Germany as a lieutenant.
His first job was as an executive at Hallmark Cards, Inc., in Kansas City, a place many people would have been satisfied to spend an entire career. But Bob and Jane relocated to Vernon Hills, Ill., and a job as an executive with American Hospital Supply in Evanston. He later worked for Baxter Healthcare Corp. in Deerfield, Allegiance Healthcare Corp. in McGaw Park, Ill., and Cardinal Healthcare, also in McGaw Park.
It was in 2002 that he joined Roundtable Healthcare Partners as senior vice president for human resources, a place where both his expertise and personality were clearly appreciated.
During his Chicago years, his two children were born, Elizabeth and Robert Blake Jr. After his cancer diagnosis, he was still able to see both of his children graduate from the University of Iowa, and in the fall of 2010 he got to walk Liz down the aisle as she married Jason Pasquinelli.
In his last year, Bob helped as we moved our Mom, Margaret, from Kansas to a senior living facility in Wisconsin and he took a big role in helping get her acclimated to her new surroundings, even as his own health was failing. The drugs that had worked so well in his battle with cancer began to lose their effectiveness, but Bob faced the final chapter with the same strength with which he lived his life, with more concern for others -- particularly Jane and his children who so closely fought his battle with him -- than for himself.
We will miss him, but his smile and sense of humor, his endless energy, his inquisitive and upbeat nature, his organizational skills, his concern for others and his love of family and his spirit live on.
-- John DeBaun
Bob and daughter Liz enjoy a "test drive" on the International Cub at the tree farm.
