In my high school and college years, I spent summers working for Bob at HBA Service Company. At first, I don't know that I was good for much more than running parts from job site to job site, but Bob didn't mind. He came up with jobs for me that played to my strengths - wiring, chiller hardware programming - and over time my skills improved. Bob always insisted that I understand not just the mechanics of HVAC, but the principles as well. To this day, I can recall his lectures on thermodynamics and heat transfer. While it took me many years to reflect on Bob's words and develop a strong interest in mechanics, I think he would be proud to learn that I've since used these skills to take apart, repair and rebuild just about every system and appliance in my home.
More than anything, though, I think Bob kept me around to share his passion for reading. Bob and I were both voracious readers, and hardly a week went by without Bob bringing a stack of paperbacks to the office. He would lend these to me, and then ask for my thoughts once I finished reading them. True to form, when I last met with Bob for lunch in Denver several years ago, he had with him a cardboard box full of books to share.
If you read through the other comments on this tribute page, you'll find that my mother and brother also worked for Bob for lengthy periods of time - 30+ years and 10 years, respectively. It goes without saying that Bob was a true friend to my family, and he will be greatly missed.
John Fried
