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Photo of Robert D. Hill

Robert D. Hill

1/7/1939 - 11/17/2022


Obituary


Robert D. Hill, 83 of rural Clarion, passed away peacefully on Thursday, November 17, 2022 surrounded by family at his new home in Eagle Grove.

Funeral services for Robert Hill will be held at 1:30 PM on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, at Ewing Funeral Home, 1801 Central Avenue East in Clarion, with Father Jerry Blake officiating.  Burial will be at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in rural Woolstock.

Visitation for Robert Hill will be held from 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM on Tuesday at the funeral home.

Robert was born January 7, 1939 in Iowa City, Iowa to Bernard Burkam Hill and Mary Caroline Reiland Hill. He was raised in Clarion,  Iowa where he attended first the Catholic School and then graduated from Clarion High School in 1957.

Robert married Donna M. Craig July 27. 1961. Bob and Donna were married 62 years and showed their daughters what true love was about through the good times and the not so good times. Bob and Donna Raised their four daughters in Clarion and then moved to their acreage north of Holmes in 2005.

Robert worked on a farm for his uncle in High School and worked at Robie’s grocery store. As an adult he worked construction for a short time and then was an over the road truck driver for 47 years. Upon his retirement he moved to the acreage north of Holmes and enjoyed working in his large gardens every year and taking care of the property. Robert stayed very busy with outside chores until his health slowed him down in his 80’s.

Robert loved watching football, especially his grandson Michael’s SEP high school team on the TV. He was a lover of horses and did many parades, saddle club events, and trail rides with his daughters in his younger years with the family horses. He started the family tradition of camping with the whole family Labor Day weekend at the Dayton Rodeo when his daughters were very young. That tradition has continued with his daughters, grandchildren, and great grandchildren still camping at Dayton and sharing the experience with him even after he was no longer able to attend due to health. He loved trips to the casino with Donna and they took several cruises together. After retirement he and Donna had daily Yahtzee tournaments every morning to start their day. Robert enjoyed the family get-togethers with all of the children and grandchildren. Due to his travels all over the United States as a truck driver, he always had stories to tell and loved telling those stories right up to the end of his life. He was always happy and had a smile on his face. He taught his children and grandchildren so much about perseverance and staying strong through all of life’s struggles.  He will be so missed.

He was a life-long member of St. John’s Catholic Church.

He is survived by four daughters, Penelope Mohr (Kenneth) of Eagle Grove, Rebecca Cantrell of Eagle Grove, Constance Hill of Altoona, and Michele Roach (John) of Altoona; grandchildren Casey Thul of Eagle Grove, Mallory Lalor (Donavon) of Eagle Grove, Miranda Thul of Eagle Grove, Mariah Fortune (Jennifer) of Woolstock, Mercedes Thul (Shane Meyer) of Eagle Grove, Taya Morris of Bode, Nicholas Cantrell (TC Murphy) of Eagle Grove, Selena Hill (Nathan Larsen) of Des Moines, Jasmine Hill of Altoona, Samantha Hill of Altoona, Thomas Roach of Altoona, and Michael Roach of Altoona; 15 great-grandchildren and great-grandson Ace Robert due to be born in January 2023 (Robert was so excited and proud to have a namesake to leave behind and talked frequently about this from the time he found out this summer); one great-great granddaughter; sister Patricia Mickelson of Eagle Grove; sisters-in-law Elsie Hill of Clarion, Penny Dalluge of Mason City, and Julie Bergo (Rex) of Mason City; and brother in law Jeff Craig (Laura) of Mason City.

He was preceded in death by his wife Donna in September of 2022; his mother and father Mary and Bernard Hill; brothers Kenneth Hill and Gerald Hill; sister Lorine Meyer; in-laws Donald Craig, Ione Asbury, and Elizabeth Ternberg; sister-in-law and brother-in-law Marcia Weir Connell and Bill Connell; brothers-in-law Clair Meyer, Keith Mickelson, and David Dalluge; sister-in-law Bonnie Hill  and great-granddaughter Adaya Lalor.