Robert J. Urlocker, long-time resident of Apopka, Florida, passed away on Sunday, July 2nd. He had just celebrated his 93rd birthday with friends and residents at Village on the Green, in Longwood, where he had lived since 2017.
Bob grew up in Thorold, Ontario, Canada with his brothers and sisters Jimmy (deceased), Tom, Joanne and Mary. He studied metallurgical engineering, earning a bachelor’s degree from Queens University and a Master’s Degree from University of Toronto, despite missing a year of school due to scoliosis.
He married Mary Cavanaugh of Kingston, Ontario in September, 1956 and they were together until her death in 2006. They lived in Mississauga, Ontario and later moved to Montreal, Quebec. They raised five children Karen, Shawn, Mark, Michael and Tim, all who turned out pretty good and none went to jail. They were members of Whitlock Golf & Country Club in Hudson. He was an avid golfer, though not nearly as good as his wife. They were also members of the Baie d’Urfe Curling Club.
His early career was in chemical engineering at Liquid Carbonic and Air Liquide. He later switched industries to become GM of the Canadian Division of American Air Filter, a manufacturing company. When American Air Filter was acquired by a larger company in the early 1980s, they moved from Montreal to Louisville, Kentucky. They made a lot of friends there and greatly enjoyed the community. In 1989, he made one final switch to become CFO of a semiconductor testing company in Florida and built a home on a golf-course in Errol Estates in Apopka.
After Bob’s retirement, they traveled to Russia, Macedonia and other countries where he worked with a non-profit organization as an advisor to help local manufacturing companies. After Mary passed away in 2006, he continued to travel to California, Arizona, Alaska, Canada, China, Germany, Poland, Israel, Australia and New Zealand. He traveled to 34 countries and 48 states.
He is survived by his five children and their spouses, twelve grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
A funeral service will be held in Ottawa, Canada in August.