Robert Vanstrum

Robert “Bob” Carl Vanstrum went home to his heavenly Father on April 27th, 2023 at age 93.

Bob was born to Raymond and Linda Vanstrum on July 30th, 1929 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and was later baptized and confirmed in the Covenant Church.  As a youth he had a special fondness for sports and music.  He was an outstanding student and graduated at age 16 from Edison High School in Minneapolis.

Bob then attended Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota.  He lettered in golf and wrote for the school newspaper. His education was interrupted by two years of service in the army at Fort Bragg during the Korean War. He later graduated from the University of Minnesota’s Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Science in both Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

He married Minnesota golf champion Beverly Gammon in December of 1956.  In 1959 they welcomed their first child Kristi, followed by Matthew in 1963 who succumbed to pneumonia a few weeks after birth. In 1965 his son Erik was born, followed by son Kirk a short 14 months later.

Bob had a distinguished 35-year career with 3M. His work in the Traffic Materials Division and reflective materials resulted in 7 U.S. patents and he retired in 1994 as a Division Scientist.

Bob enjoyed many hobbies including volleyball, golf, gardening, camping, traveling, skiing, and solving math puzzles and crosswords.  He wrote numerous letters to editors of newspapers, periodicals, and radio programs voicing his opinion on many different subjects.  Bob was an avid Minnesota sports fan and loved to follow the Gophers, the Twins and especially, the Vikings.  He and Bev joined Stillwater Country Club in 1959 and enjoyed decades of golf together.

Bob loved to share his Christian faith.  He was a long-time member of Arlington Hills Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, Minnesota before joining St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi, MN in 1977.  He sang in the choir at the 1961 Billy Graham crusade and helped to start a Young Life chapter in White Bear Lake where he played piano during their worship times for 17 years.  He supported many Christian organizations over the years including Campus Crusade for Christ.  As a scientist/engineer he loved nothing more than to dig deeply into the Bible, especially the creation story, the life of Jesus, and the prophesies in Revelation.

Bob was a faithful spouse to Bev as she later succumbed to Parkinson’s disease in 2009. His last years were spent at Boutwells Landing in Oak Park Heights, Minnesota surrounded by many wonderful caregivers.

Bob was preceded in death by his parents, sister Patricia (Gordon) Evans, his wife Bev, son Matthew and grandsons Keith and Craig Killian.  He is survived by his children Kris Killian (Doug), Erik Vanstrum (Mary Ann) and Kirk Vanstrum (Melissa) and five grandchildren, Molly Ratgen (Luke), Karl Vanstrum, John Vanstrum, Annika Vanstrum and Greta Vanstrum.

A Celebration of Bob’s life will be held at 11AM Saturday, June 3rd at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church, 900 Stillwater Road in Mahtomedi, with a visitation beginning at 10AM.  In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Young Life Organization (younglife.org) and Campus Crusade for Christ (cru.org).