Obituaries

Robert Lee Austin

Robert Lee Austin

Robert Lee Austin, 83, passed away on Thursday, April 30, 2009, at the VA Medical Center in Sheridan.

He was born on Oct. 1, 1925, in Provo, Utah, the only child of the late Clyde Lee Austin and Juanita Smith-Cerf and her husband, Howard A. Cerf.

Austin attended schools in Utah, Wyoming and Texas and as a boy, worked in his grandmother’s restaurants in Rawlins and Lamont. As a young man, Bob worked as a ranch hand, dealt cards in Nevada and was an extra and livestock wrangler for western movies filmed in Los Angeles, Calif. In later years, he was a carpet layer and welder.

He proudly served in the United States Army as a Rifleman and was wounded twice in the line of duty. He was awarded the Purple Heart with an Oak Leaf Cluster.

During a visit with his mother in Salt Lake City, Utah, he met, courted and married Jessie Naomi Goff. Together, they owned and operated Custom Campers in Salt Lake City and raised four children.

He was an avid fisherman and hunter and frequently provided for his family with the game he brought home. Bob’s happiest memories were of the time he spent in Wyoming and he longed to return. With their children mostly raised, Bob and Jessie moved to Big Piney and built their home on the Green River.

They spent many happy years in Big Piney until declining health forced them to move to Sheridan to be nearer to family. After settling in Sheridan, he made many trips back to his beloved Big Piney and to the Fontenelle Reservoir to fish. He was as quick with a helping hand as he was with a joke. He was a warm, generous man with a huge heart.

He is survived by his wife Jessie of Spanish Fork, Utah; two daughters Laura Austin-Ely and husband Rick of Bulls Gap, Tenn., and Sharon Austin-Egelston and husband Allen of Spanish Fork, Utah; granddaughters Leigh Chapin-Doll and husband Geoff, Jessica Egelston-Shurtleff and husband Paul; grandsons Robert Chapin and Bryan Egelston; great-granddaughters Alexys and Kaytlyn Koch and Gillyan Doll; and great-grandson Shane Casey Egelston.

He was preceded in death by his parents and two sons, David Lee Austin and Mark Allan Austin.

A private family memorial will take place in Big Piney at a later date.