Obituary of Robert N. Luce

Robert "Bob" Luce, 91, of Vernon, passed away on Thursday, March 9, 2023. He was born to his mother Helen E. (Barcomb) Luce, on August 26, 1931, and raised by his stepfather William H. Luce.   

Bob was born in Boston, MA and after lived in the mountains of Vermont before he joined the Army at age 18. He was enlisted for four years and separated as a Sergeant serving as a Drill Instructor. He then moved to Connecticut where he met his wife. Bob and Eleanor met at Hartford Skating Palace in June 1953 and married one year later, May 29, 1954. They purchased their houses, each a little larger, because they filled the homes with children. The family were members of St. Luke Parish in Ellington, CT. Bob was a Pratt and Whitney man retiring as a supervisor in 1988 with a Golden Handshake after 35 years. Ironically, his retirement also lasted 35 years! He adored his wife, family and friends and enjoyed in his lifetime 60 cruises all around the world with them! Bob loved country music and looked forward to spending time at the casino with Eleanor. They would sing country music together the whole way there.  Bob loved to laugh and joke, and he made friends everywhere he went.    

Bob loved sports. He was a diehard fan of the New York Yankees and the Green Bay Packers and followed the UConn Huskies (both men and women). He coached his boys in baseball, basketball, and football. Bob was even on his high school basketball team and was very proud of that! He stayed involved with his boys and was also a Boy Scout leader. He especially enjoyed golfing with his sons and friends and bowling with his family, the seniors and best buddies Kenny Oliver and Jack DeRosier (predeceased). Bob also coached bowling at the Vernon Lanes. Bob loved to indulge in television later in his life, his favorite late day/evening show was Chicago P.D. & Criminal Minds or watching golf. He also loved the Discovery, Animal Planet and History Channels. Both Bob and Eleanor enjoyed watching their favorite daytime shows together: The Price is Right and Let's Make A Deal. Bob continued to watch them daily after Eleanor had passed away in March 2020, after 65 loving years of marriage.  

After Eleanor's passing, Bob lived with his son Tom and daughter-in-law Melisa for 2 ½ years before moving into a retirement home, Evergreen Crossing in South Windsor, where he enjoyed his last five months living in a cruise ship style resort retirement home. Bob lived with an LVad for 9 years and his granddaughter, Jeanette Luce took care of him diligently on a weekly basis, and also took care of all his medications and doctor's appointments. In January of 2021, Bob also was placed on a picc line, as the right side of his heart became weaker. His son Tom became his fulltime caregiver. On top of the LVad team, Bob also had a whole hospice team since May of 2022 and home health care providers that cared for him daily/weekly. Bob loved to sing Doh doh doh ray me...far so la te doh and told everyone he cared about to, "drive careful!" before they left.  

Bob is survived by his children Daniel, Kenneth, Ronald, David, Thomas, and Marcia; his Godson/nephew Robert "Bobby" Rutkowski; son-in-law to be Glenn Safranek; his daughters-in-law Mary Rose Luce, Loreen Luce, Robin Luce, Melisa Luce and Angie Rutkowski; 18 grandchildren and several great and great-great grandchildren. Besides his mother Helen (predeceased in 1985), his stepfather William (predeceased in 1991), and his wife Eleanor, Bob was also predeceased by his daughter Patricia, his sister Deloris Dean, two brothers Richard "Dick" and Beebe Luce, two grandsons Tom Luce Jr. and Jason Dennin, and a future daughter-in-law Jayne Tessier.   

John F. Tierney Funeral Home has care of the arrangements. Relatives and friends are invited to attend a graveside service on Saturday, March 18 at 11am at Ellington Center Cemetery, 95 Maple Street in Ellington. For online condolences, please visit www.tierneyfuneralhome.com.