Rob Wagner died from a heart attack in 2024. “He and his wife Karen had just returned from his daughter Kristin’s wedding in Spain,” says Paul Lamar. “He was originally in the Class of ’66, but after freshman year he took a year off in his hometown, Cleveland.
“Rob and I met in the elevator of Morse Tower in September 1964. His sense of humor, his musical skills at the piano and as a composer, his ping-pong prowess, discussions about his family and mine, visits to each other’s home, shared experience in Music Theory 10, and yaks about everything and nothing around the dining table in Morse – thanks to all of this, a 60-year friendship was started. He had a great smile and an easy laugh, always!
“When we first met, I quickly discovered that he had a fake front tooth and diabetes. To me such physical anomalies in a young person seemed unusual. The tooth? A sports accident. It was a partial that he would occasionally take out in order to look goofy – in other words, another opportunity to laugh.
“The diabetes, though, was a different matter. He had been diagnosed as a boy sometime in the 1950s, so managing the condition was a lifelong challenge. He did it admirably, always sensitive to his intake of the right kind of food at the right time, pricking himself as needed, and taking stock of how he was feeling. Of course, as treatment became more sophisticated and user friendly he adapted, and we often discussed those blessed changes.
“I’m sure that his diligent and intelligent handling of a condition that, before insulin, was a death sentence, enabled him to live the long and active life he did. Another reason why I admired Rob.”