BANGOR – Robert J. “Bob” Eaton, 81, died Aug. 16, 2010, at a Bangor hospital. He was born April 30, 1929, in Bangor, son of George Franklin and Elizabeth Gale (Littlefield) Eaton. Bob was a 1947 graduate of Deerfield Academy and a graduate of Bowdoin College, Class of 1951, where he sang with the Meddiebempsters and was a member of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. He was a lieutenant junior grade in the U.S. Navy, where he served as navigator and executive officer on the minesweeper, Token, sweeping World War II mines in the British Channel and in the Mediterranean Sea. After his service on Token, he served as second in command on the “870,” a training ship based out of New Orleans. After his honorable discharge from the Navy, Bob obtained his law degree from Boston University School of Law, returning to Bangor to practice law at Eaton, Peabody, Bradford and Veague until his retirement. Bob’s favorite activities included spending time with his extended family on the porch of the “Sea Chest,” overlooking Buck’s Harbor, cruising the Maine coast and singing with the Landlords. He was a member of All Souls Congregational Church, where he had served as moderator and a member of the choir. Bob was a past commodore and longstanding clerk of Buck’s Harbor Yacht Club. His dry sense of humor will be missed by all. Surviving, in addition to his wife of 59 years, Julia Ann (Lorenz) Eaton of Bangor, are two daughters, the Rev. Anna “Nancy” (Eaton) Butera and her husband, Nicholas, of Walpole, Mass., and Julia Ann Eaton, resident of Treats Falls House, Orono; one son, George F. Eaton II and his wife, Carolyn, also of Orono; four grandchildren, Peter Butera of Brighton, Mass., Kevin Butera of Newton, Mass., Allison Eaton of Burlington, Vt., and Geoffrey Eaton of Orono; his brother, Dwight L. Eaton and close friend, Alison Miner, of South Brooksville; cousins, Carolyn (Eaton) Field and her husband, Edwin, of Lexington, Mass., Frederick Eaton Jr. and his wife, Betsy, of Millinocket; many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother, Franklin W.; sister-in-law, Florence (Perry) Eaton; his brother, Richard G. Eaton of Maryland; and sister-in-law, Carolyn (Colburn) Eaton of South Brooksville. Relatives and friends are welcome to call 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 19, at Brookings-Smith, 133 Center St., Bangor. A memorial service will be held 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 20, at All Souls Congregational Church, 10 Broadway, Bangor, with the Rev. Dr. James L. Haddix, pastor and teacher, officiating. Interment will be at Mount Hope Cemetery, Bangor. Those who wish to remember Bob in a special way, may make gifts to the memorial fund of All Souls Congregational Church; Eastern Maine Medical Center or Blue Hill Memorial Hospital, care of Health Care Charities, P.O. Box 931, Bangor, ME 04401; or Treats Falls House Inc., P.O. Box 457, Orono, ME 04469. Condolences to the family may be expressed at www.BrookingsSmith.com.
ROBERT J. ‘BOB’ EATON
