Robert Joseph Kammerer—business leader, mentor, friend, husband, father, avid golfer and grandfather—died at age 78 on Friday evening, Jan. 22 at Waveny Care Center in New Canaan.
Bob was born on March 29, 1937 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the fifth of five children of Roy and Sarah Kammerer. He attended local Minneapolis schools and DeLaSalle High School. He excelled in many sports and was an all-state player in basketball, baseball and football. He played basketball at the University of Wisconsin and the University of Minnesota, and graduated from St. Cloud University.
Bob served in the U.S. Army for two years where he also played basketball and baseball. He was predeceased by his brothers John and Tom and his sister Mary Ann Dietrich.
He began his business career with Xerox Corp. in Chicago in 1964 and had several sales and management positions in Appleton, Wisc., Indianapolis, and Rochester, N.Y. prior to joining the Canadian company in 1970. He became president of Xerox Canada in 1973, creating both research and manufacturing facilities in Canada.
In 1976 he returned to the United States and had many senior management positions involving the Middle East, China, and Latin America. Retiring from Xerox in 1992, Bob joined Baldwin Associates, an executive search firm specializing in technology. He retired in 2003.
In addition to his wife of 50 years, Bob is survived by one daughter, Sarah Bell, and three sons—Charles Kammerer David Kammerer and Mark Kammerer, as well as 10 grandchildren.
A Mass of Christian burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 30 at St Thomas More Church, 335 Middlesex Ave, Darien.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Bob’s memory to DeLaSalle High School, One DeLaSalle Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 55401-1500.
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