Robert D. “Bob” Owen, 87, of Lincoln, Neb., formerly of St. Paul, died Thursday, April 20, 2023, at Eastmont Towers in Lincoln.
Funeral Services will be 1 p.m. Tuesday at the United Methodist Church in St. Paul. The Rev. Susan Murithi will officiate. Military honors will be held outside the church by Carl Mogensen American Legion Post 119 of St. Paul and the Army National Guard Funeral Honors Team. Burial will be in Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Grand Island.
Visitation will be Monday from 5 to 7 p.m. at the church.
In lieu of flowers and plants, memorials are suggested to the St. Paul Education Foundation.
Peters Funeral Home of St. Paul is assisting the family.
Bob was born on Jan. 8, 1936, at Manhattan, KS, the son of Paul C. and Goldie M. (Harness) Owen. The family moved to Nashville, and later to Bellevue (Offutt), Omaha and Lincoln, where he attended Hawthorne Elementary and graduated from Lincoln Northeast High School in 1954. He then attended UN-L where he graduated in 1958.
He was united in marriage to Maryth O. Brush on June 4, 1958 in Lincoln. His teaching career began in Bertrand where he taught music for two years, later teaching band in Seward. In 1961, the family moved to St. Paul, where he taught music, primarily band, for over twenty years. In 1982, he and Maryth moved to Wolbach, where he was a music teacher for 5 years and in Greeley for 1 year. His career continued teaching elementary music in Doniphan, later to Spencer Naper where he was a school librarian, then to Clarkson where he was a media specialist for the next 12 years. In July 2003, the couple returned to St. Paul to retire. Maryth died Feb. 22, 2007.
Bob served in the Nebraska Army National Guard for over 27 years, and was in the National Guard Band for 22 years.
He was united in marriage to Kathryn (Reed) Peterson at the Sunken Gardens in Lincoln on Sept. 18, 2010. The couple lived in Lincoln their entire married life.
Bob was a member of the Nebraska State Education Association, National Education Association, Nebraska Military Retiree Council and Carl Mogensen American Legion Post 119 of St. Paul. He was a member of the United Methodist Church in St. Paul and after moving to Lincoln, he was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church.
He enjoyed music, golfing and chasing the grandkids.
He is survived by his wife, Kathryn Owen of Lincoln; children and spouses, David and Lorrie Owen of Aurora and Dawnell and Douglas Glunz of Grand Island; 4 grandchildren, Ashlyn and Adam Wilkes, Lance Glunz, Karissa and Ryan Fauss, and Arianna Owen; 7 great-grandchildren, Howard, Karli, Garrett, Zachary, Jakki, Laini and Naomi; and two brothers and one sister-in-law, Ronald Owen of Lincoln and Richard and Cindy Owen of Omaha.
In addition to his first wife, Maryth, he was preceded in death by his parents.