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Robert Reeves is dead; devoted life to service Executive with Bellows assisted many causes in Akron community By Dave Ghose Beacon Journal staff writer Every December, Robert L. Reeves would make a list of newly widowed friends. He would then send each a box of candies and a card to help them through the holiday season. ``He wanted someone to remember them,'' said his youngest daughter, Kathryn Shroder, 46, of Howland, Ohio. Mr. Reeves died Saturday in Akron from Parkinson's disease. Over nearly four decades in Akron, the retired Bellows International executive developed a deep love for his adopted city and gave back to it. He served on the boards of Children's Hospital Medical Center of Akron, Akron General Medical Center and St. Thomas Hospital. He was chairman of the board of Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens and president of Litchfield Rehabilitation Center, which Akron General bought. Mr. Reeves was also a trustee emeritus at Old Trail School in Bath Township. ``His life motto was community service, which he certainly preached to all of us,'' Shroder said. Betty Richards, whose husband, Bill, worked with Mr. Reeves at Bellows for 11 years, said Mr. Reeves' public service had a big impact on Akron. He brought his fiscal and organizational skills to the agencies he served and had the foresight to push the Litchfield Rehabilitation Center to merge into Akron General -- a move that helped the agency survive. ``He was very loyal and true blue, and he was very dedicated to whatever he undertook,'' said Richards, 77, who knew Mr. Reeves for about 30 years. Mr. Reeves was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Atlanta. Though he lived in Akron since 1963, he kept his Southern accent and manners. He always dressed impeccably. Though he accomplished much during his years of community service, his children said he is most proud of his family. His four daughters and sons-in-law have carried on the community service tradition and are active with hospitals, churches and other organizations. ``It was just understood that was the life we were all born into,'' said his eldest daughter, Ann Burton, 62, of Akron. Even as a young man, family always came first to him. At Georgia Tech University, he was a pitcher on the baseball team. After graduation in the 1920s, he had a chance to try out for a Brooklyn Dodgers farm team, but he turned it down to take a job to support his family. His father had just died, leaving the family with little income. ``That tells you how important family was to him,'' Shroder said. Mr. Reeves also leaves his wife, Harriet, daughters Alice Hood of Copley Township and Nancy Peterson of Centerville, nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Services will be at 11 a.m. tomorrow at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Akron. The family will receive friends immediately after the service. Memorials may be made to the Stan Hywet Foundation, 714 N. Portage Path, Akron, OH 44303; St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 1361 W. Market Street, Akron, OH 44313; Old Trail School, P.O. Box 827, Bath, OH 44210; or the donor's favorite charity. Dave Ghose can be reached at 330-996-3737 or [log in to unmask] http://www.ohio.com/bj/news/docs/013695.htm ************** [log in to unmask]