Robert "Bob" E. Durbin

Robert “Bob” E. Durbin, 84, passed away September 16, 2019 at Iowa Methodist Medical Center.

Bob was born September 5, 1935 to Ernest and Helen Durbin. On April 5, 1959, he married Phyllis Jean Snethen. They shared more than 60 years of adventures together. His devotion to his wife, and hers to him, was unwavering—a beautiful example to everyone of real love and commitment.

Bob worked in banking for most of his career and retired after 40 years of dedicated service. He was a soft-spoken, hardworking and generous man whose greatest joy in life was his family. He supported, coached, encouraged, loved without boundaries and taught countless lessons to his 9 children and 13 grandchildren. Some of our favorites are:

• Show up and be on time - if you are not 15 minutes early, you are late.
• Have a strong work ethic. Do the job – any job – 100%.
• Try. Outcomes are unpredictable but if you do not try, the only result you will have is failure.
• Laugh. A lot. Everything has potential to be funny.
• Let kids be kids. Dirt, noise, messes…all of it. Affectionately known as “Grandpa Broccoli” and “Papa” by his grandkids – he loved the littles and they love him.
• Sing and dance. Bob danced at every celebration and taught all of his girls how it should feel to twirl around the dance floor with someone you love.
• Eat the Cake. A fan of treats and ice cream, he made sure his friends and family knew that some things in this life are just worth forgetting the diet.

No words can describe the gratitude and appreciation that each of his 9 children feel for the unquantifiable amount of time he spent on the sidelines, in the bleachers and in the auditoriums, cheering them on as they pursued their individual passions.

When asked at his 60th wedding anniversary about his best memory of the last 60 years, he answered, “The best memory of the last 60 years is just everybody getting together like they did tonight—you got all the family together.”

Bob is survived by his loving wife of 60 years, Jean; children, William (Kate), Diana (Gary) Hayungs, Rebecca (Mike) Parker, Cynthia (Corey) Faller, Jonathan (Kim), Theresa (Matt) Wilson, Daniel, Pamela (Shane) Harshbarger and James (Carla); grandchildren, Bradey, Taylor, Sydney, Madison, Alexander, Austin, Maya, Andrew, Isabelle, Kamryn, Rio, Ethan and Evy; his brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law; as well as a host of nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents and siblings, Erma, William, Audrey, and Lucille.

A Celebration of Life will be held from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, September 18, 2019 at the Scottish Rite Consistory, 519 Park Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50309. A private graveside service will be held at Sunset Memorial Gardens Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be directed to the family in loving memory of Bob.

Condolences may be expressed at www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com.

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