Robert Forrest Hever, 83

Robert Forrest Hever died on Saturday, October 4, 2014, at Pardee Hospital. He was 83.

He was born on July 14, 1931, in E. Pepperell, Massachusetts, to Forrest Armentrout and Marion Rhodes Armentrout. As an adult, he was adopted by his stepfather, Jack B. Hever, changing his surname from Armentrout to Hever.

He served in the U.S. Air Force for 5 1⁄2 years, being stationed in England for about 3 years. He was a jet aircraft & engine mechanic and crew chief on the first operational jet bomber in the USAF, the B-45 Tornado. After leaving the Air Force, he attended the University of California at Berkeley, graduating with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He worked as an aerospace engineer, sanitary engineer, and environmental engineer, about 12 years in each field.

He was predeceased by his father, mother, stepfather, and his half-sister Beverly LaSonde. He is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Marjorie Bruce Hever, and their adult children, Roberta Anne Lipe and her husband Steve, of Arden; John Bruce Hever and his wife Jana, of Orlando; and David Neil Hever and his wife Jennifer, of Westerville, Ohio; their six grandchildren, Katelyn Hever, of Denver; Kara Hever, Emily Hever, and Caleb Hever, all of Orlando; Bailey Hever, of Westerville, Ohio; and Alexandria Lipe, of Arden. Also surviving are his half-brothers Forrest and Roy Armentrout and his half-sister Kay Maurice, and their spouses and children, and many cousins.

While working on the Bomarc, Minuteman, and Apollo/Saturn V programs, Bob obtained a private pilot's license and was in the Civil Air Patrol on Merritt Island, Florida. At the age of 40, Bob enrolled in a program or aerospace engineers at Florida Technological University (now University of Central Florida) resulting in his earning a Master's degree in Environmental Systems Management. Then he and his family moved to Canton, Ohio, where he was active with Toastmasters, winning the highest level of humorous speech contest. Then later in Columbia, Md., after retirement, Bob became a Maryland Master Gardener and served on the State of Maryland's gardening hotline.

He was active in First Presbyterian Church in Hendersonville as a volunteer painter, usher captain, and Fix-it Friend. He developed the procedures for the Fix-it Friends and Community Service Days efforts and wrote the church's ushering guidelines and a humorous column in the church newsletter for about five years. Bob was an author, published in several inflight magazines of American Airlines and other magazines and in a college textbook on fiction.

A memorial service will be held at First Presbyterian Church, 699 North Grove Street, on Saturday, October 11, 2014, at 2:00 p.m., with Dr. William Campbell officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given to the church, with checks made out to HPC Reserve Trust.