About 69 years ago when I started dating my husband I met Bob and many of the other “paperboys”. When Elmer and I got married in 1951 Bob was in our wedding and he was the kind of friend who was always available to lend a hand. He helped when we moved from apartment to our first home in Edmonds and 26 years later he helped us move again when we down sized houses after our kids were grown. In those earlier years we all enjoyed getting together at Cottage Lake and Lake Goodwin for summer picnics and had lots of fun house parties.
The past three years Bob has been a great source of encouragement to me after losing the vision in my right eye. We talked frequently on the phone - our last conversation was in late October when I called to tell him I passed my drivers exam and my license was renewed to 2024 and thanked him for helping me rebuild my confidence.
Since that call I called and left several messages on Bob’s answering machine that he likely never heard but I always enjoyed hearing his cheerful voice message about “being around the house someplace”. I now enjoy picturing Bob being greeted once again by Elmer, Jim, Gordon, Dave and others - great friends in life and now for all eternity.
RIP Bob.

First, we would like to express our sympathy to Bob's family. In remembering him, we need to go back quite a number of years (more than 60) to High School age kids, who became friends and stayed friends while delivering newspapers. We all spent a lot of time as young couples getting all of us together for parties, dinners and celebrating New Years Eve. Even in later years, we tried to have dinner with all of us at least once or twice a year. As we got older and distances made travel to each others homes more difficult, it became less and less frequent. However, that is when we resorted to e-mails and more telephone calling. We had a nice conversation shortly before he became so ill

Bob was a very warm, happy guy and loved having friends around him. We will miss him and his quick wit that he displayed a lot in his Christmas message and in just conversing with him at any time. He was a really good guy. RIP, Bob.
Don and Jan Lovell

It was last spring when I first met Robert LeRoy Bardwell at his family home in West Seattle. Bob was a young 88-year-old man living life and envisioning his future. We would chat and sip coffee as we watched ferries and birds from his kitchen window. His stories told of challenge met with perseverance and character resulting in accomplishment and fulfilment. As I listened to Bob, I heard countless examples of work, loyalty and commitment as he stayed supportively involved with those around him. While the premise of these relationships may have passed, Bob sounded enriched in his service to others. I share a perspective…
As a young man, Bob became married to Evelyn Kime who worked as a nurse in a TB quarantine hospital. In 1955 Evelyn tested positive and became a patient, her chance of survival unknown. Evelyn was also discovered pregnant, an untimely complexity which brought the future into even further question! Lacking good prognosis, it was decided best that if the child should survive, he or she would be placed for adoption. Due to circumstance, total privacy seemed the easiest way. Bob kept her secret safe over the years, a testament to his honor and devotion, yet harbored plans to find this child someday. 62 years later, I found Bob first. I showed Bob pictures of his grandchildren and he showed me his book of Bardwell ancestry. It feels wonderful to have made the connection with Bob and while our time was too short, it was special. He was a good man and would have been a great father. I love Bob. RIP.

Van W. Casebolt
Seattle, Washington
January 19, 2019

We are remembering one of the most generous men we have ever known. From teen years to the present, we've enjoyed over 60 years of friendship . He was like his father, an old fashioned gentleman. Dealing with physical problems of his own for a lifetime he still put other's needs ahead of his own. Bob was trustworthy and loyal to a fault.

However, back in the day, he hosted a Boy's Night Out for the Seattle Times paper delivery boys , generously sharing a punch bowl full of fruit and home brew. Never having had the "brew" before all were shocked to find walking was nearly impossible. Not wanting to mess up the house, many guests spent the night face down on the lawn. So much for generosity......... The "gang" survived!

Bob was one of Lyle's groomsmen at our wedding in 1955. We were pleased he didn't mess with our get-away car.

You're going to be missed, Bob. People like you don't come around very often.

Fondly, Lyle & Laura Peterson