On Sunday, Sept 25th 2016, Deacon Bob passed away at the age of 65 and started his journey into the house of the Lord to live with his Saviour.
He left this world peacefully after a courageous battle with cancer with all his family at his side.
He will be greatly missed and forever remembered by all. Bob was born in Geraldton, On. He later, at an early age, moved to Fort William. He attended Fort William Collegiate where he met his closest friends of whom he still has today.
He attended Confederation College, and from here started his job as the manager of Zellers at Intercity Shopping Centre. A transfer later brought himself and his wife Sandra to spend the next 15 years in Orillia.
Bob went on to be a Land Title Searcher and then a self educated computer technician.
While in Orillia, Bob was elected trustee of the Separate School Board for two terms. He was instrumental in organizing a committee for the start of the Catholic Secondary School. In 1988, Bob and his family returned to Thunder Bay where he joined the IT department at Weiler, Maloney, Nelson. Bob's final jobs took him to the Catholic School Board and Northwest Community Health Centre; both in the field of computers.
Bob loved sports and helped coach hockey in his younger years.
He loved to play baseball, hockey and golf and was an avid Leafs, Jays, and Vikings fan. He loved to travel and was able to explore the world a lot with Sandra in his later years. Bob loved family gatherings, making family his number one priority. He was known to be the entertainer for all functions. His humour will never be forgotten.
Bob's spiritual life grew while attending a Life in the Spirit seminar. He and Sandra were active in the prayer groups where they led these seminars. Bob also received the gift of song and wrote many christian songs that we will remember forever. He was called to be a Deacon on Aug. 10th 1999.
This brought him joy and peace. He was involved in many church ceremonies such as baptisms, confirmations, weddings, and was a member of the Deaconate Formation.
Bob will be lovingly remembered by his wife of 42 years, Sandra, his children Nicole (Dave) Zuefle, Michelle (Bob) Gashinski, Ryan (partner Sharon) Debesys. Bob will also be remembered by his 5 grandchildren Kirklynd, Emily, Macy, Harper, Lexi, Step Granddaughter Sydney, and Ryan's best buddy, Sharon's son Judah. He will also be missed by his two sisters Betty (Dan) Baker, and Viktorija (Dan) Shane, and all nieces and nephews. Bob was predeceased by his parents Peter and Elena Debesys.
We would like to thank the extended family, friends and neighbours who supported us in this past year. The prayers, cards, friendly visits and food were greatly appreciated. We were overwhelmed with the love that was shown to Bob and the family. A special thanks to the staff on 1A at TBRHSC, especially nurse Renee, as well as the Palliative Care Team - Lynda, Aaron, Tyler, Trevor, and Brenda.
Thanks also goes out to St. Joseph's Hospice, Dr. Davis, Dr. Miller, and Dr. Simpson. Thank you to anyone else we may have forgotten.
Funeral services will be held on Thursday, September 29, 2016, when family and friends will gather for Funeral Mass at 1:30pm, at St. Patrick's Cathedral celebrated by Rev. Msgr. P.M. Stilla V.G. Interment will follow in Mountain View Cemetery.
Visitation for friends and family will take place after the parish mass on Wednesday evening September 28, 2016 at 7:30 pm with prayers to be offered at 8:00pm in St. Dominic's Church.
If friends desire, memorials to the TBRHS Foundation Northern Cancer Fund, or the Catholic Action Centre would be appreciated. Robert Debesys will be remembered in the Blake Funeral Chapel Memorial Grove.
Annual dedication service Sunday, June 11, 2017.
