Robert "Bob" Rohrdanz

Robert Richard Rohrdanz, 85, of Idaho Falls, passed away July 18, 2018, at his home surrounded by his wife and family. He was under the care of Nuclear Care Partners, Alliance Home Health and Hospice, and his loving wife and family. He was born May 14, 1933, to William Albert Rohrdanz and Martha E. Jannusch Rohrdanz in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and spent a significant time at his grandparents' dairy farm in Mauston, Wisconsin, where he enjoyed his interactions with many cousins and acquired his appreciation for hard work and farming. He attended the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee for one year, and then attended Northwestern preparatory School in Minneapolis for five months. He was then admitted to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, from which he graduated as valedictorian of his class in 1957. His second academy year was spent on two merchant ships that sailed to West, South, and East Africa, and several Mediterranean countries. This experience gave him a great love of travel, a trait that was deeply ingrained in his character and part of his future careers. Upon graduation, he worked in the California aerospace industry. He found aerospace technology, driven by the space race, extremely challenging and rewarding. After 16 years in this field, he looked for a new challenge and switched to the nuclear power industry. This led him to INEL and Idaho Falls, Idaho, in 1976. After working on LOFT and several other challenging programs, he accepted an assignment as an exchange engineer at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) in Japan. In addition to his regular duties there, he had soon volunteered to teach conversational English to fellow employees and to local high school students. After the five years of his research assignment in Japan ended, he remained in Japan. He and his wife opened and operated a small English school for ten years until they returned to his home in Idaho Falls, Idaho, in 1997. For the next ten years until he fully retired, he continued his consulting business in which he reviewed and edited technical papers authored mainly by Japanese researchers in various fields. His fascination and interest in science and technology never dimmed. He continuously wondered "how" and "why" about things throughout his life. He always tried to envision practical daily-life uses for high tech concepts and products. His wife Kay was often bewildered by some of the strange ideas her "engineer" husband had for repairing and furnishing the house. Bob loved life and its challenges. He understood that each change in his life posed new challenges, and these challenges helped him reach higher goals. His interest in travel was never quenched. Most of all, he loved people. He was especially proud of his many Japanese students. Bob strove for perfection in his classes; yet, he somehow never considered teaching to be a business. He had the greatest respect for each of his students, but somehow he just considered each of them to be a friend. His keen interest in each student helped him recall many details of their lives, even after many years had passed. After his return to America, he invited them to visit Idaho, and many did. It gave Bob great pleasure to show his Japanese friends his favorite haunts in the Western United States. Bob met his wife Kay in one of his volunteer English classes at JAERI; she was the center of his life for his last 34 years. Even after years of marriage, he was still fascinated by the similarities and differences between their viewpoints in various cultural areas. Bob adored Kay and was extremely proud of her adjustment and love of America and its people. Bob enjoyed traveling with Kay and their beloved dogs, Dino, Klondike, Denali, and Laramie. His favorite place to visit was Yellowstone National Park. His marriage to Charlene Taylor Rohrdanz from 1957 to 1972 produced a son and two daughters. His second marriage was to Patricia Laliberty Rohrdanz, 1976 to 1982. He married Keiko (Kay) Ozawa Rohrdanz in 1984 in Japan. He is survived by his wife, Kay, his son, Leonard Alan Rohrdanz (Stephanie) of Idaho, daughters Dwan Rae Taylor of Oregon, Dynele Renee Hay (Mike) of Washington, five grandchildren, and one great-grandson. He was preceded in death by his parents and grandparents. A private family gathering for loved ones has taken place. In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations be made to the Idaho Falls Sister Cities, P.O. Box 51132. Idaho Falls, Id 83405.

Private Family Gathering