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Robert (Bob) Thomas Berger of Marshalltown, Iowa passed away peacefully with his wife by his side just after midnight on Tuesday, July 21, 2026 at The Willows of Marshalltown. He was 71. Memorial services will be 1:00 p.m., Saturday, August 8, 2026, at First Methodist Church in Marshalltown. Visitation will be 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Friday, August 7, 2026, at Anderson Funeral Homes in Marshalltown. Online condolences may be sent to www.andersonfhs.com.
Robert, son of Charles R. Berger and Gladys (Hayford) Berger, was born August 10, 1954 in Phillipsburg, NJ. He graduated from Phillipsburg Catholic High School in 1972, received an appointment to the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), and enrolled before his 18th birthday. While there, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Engineering while also playing on the USMMA football team coached by Cdr. George Paterno. As Co-Captain and Offensive Tackle (#73), he was named to the 1975 ECAC Div III Team of the Year. Bob spent his Sea Year aboard four ocean vessels that docked in Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon, Tunisia, Italy, Spain, France, England, Holland, West Germany, Mexico, Panama, Australia, and New Zealand before his graduation in 1976 as an Ensign. He was later promoted to Lieutenant, jg. He remained on Active Duty in the Naval Reserves until 1988.
In 2011, his close friends Ray and Sylvia Dombrowski, generously honored Bob by dedicating the USMMA locker room in his name.
His next endeavour led him to a research program at Temple University where Bob earned an MBA in Operations Research. During this time, he served as a Resident Advisor for a dormitory.
Throughout his college years, he dated and later married the love of his life, Karen L. Ziegenfuss of Phillipsburg, NJ on June 25, 1977. The love birds recently celebrated their 49th wedding anniversary. Together they had two children, Meredith and Mark, and moved between the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, Iowa, and Texas. They adopted five dogs...and one cat adopted them.
Bob's employment history included repair shop management at ITT Henze Service, and leadership at Emerson's Fisher Control Valves. He joined Fisher Controls in 1987 where he managed the LaPorte and Pasadena, TX valve service center locations and started up five new repair shops. He later held the position of Plant Manager at Fisher's Governor Road facility in Marshalltown, Iowa and GM at EIM in Missouri City, TX. At the time of his retirement in 2020, he was the VP of International Parts and Service.
Bob was a youth sports coach, a member of many industry and community organizations, and served on First Methodist Church councils. For more than 25 years, he met weekly with his Promise Keepers group for Friday breakfast. He was a Certified Barbeque Judge with the Kansas City Barbeque Society. He lived an active lifestyle that included hobbies such as mountaineering (summiting Mt Rainier, Mt Baker, and Mt Hood), golfing, playing racquetball, and working on classic sports cars, before Parkinson's Disease altered his plans. He is remembered for his jovial spirit, big smile, kindness to others, generous heart, honesty, long golf drive, cutting up the dance floor, and love of ice cream (his last meal, served to him by Karen).
Left to cherish Bob's memory are his wife, Karen, children, Meredith (Brandon) Bell of Marshalltown, IA and Mark (Alexandra) Berger of Brentwood, TN, and five grandchildren who adoringly called him Bobby: Levi, Eliza, and Vivian Bell and Jack and Olivia Berger, a sister Sharyn Berger of Pennsylvania, and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, and his in-laws, LeRoy and Betty Ziegenfuss.
Services are being arranged by Anderson Funeral Homes. Memorials may be directed to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, First Methodist Church in Marshalltown, IA, or a charity of one's choice. The family wishes to thank Dr. Randall Hamilton, Paige Legg from First Methodist church for her weekly visits, Suncrest Hospice, and the dear staff at The Willows who lovingly cared for, visited with, played bingo with, teased, asked advice from, loved on, and sneaked their Bob {Bobby, Robert!, Bobaroo, Mr. Berger} ice cream.