Obituary: Robert Dowding

Robert William Dowding, a resident, lately of Maine, died April 28, 2020 due to lung disease. Private family services will be at a later date. Robert is survived by his daughters Joselyn Walsh and her husband Terry Walsh of Gardiner Maine; Leslie Sneddon and her husband Jeffrey Sneddon of Richmond, Maine; brother Chuck “Benny” Dowding and his wife Maxine of La Quinta, California; grandsons Gavin Walsh of La Quinta, California; Marston and Isaiah Sneddon of Richmond, Maine.

He was preceded in death by father William Henry Dowding, mother Doris Emma Dowding of Terra Bella, California; sisters Carol M. Goetting of Terra Bella, California, and Anita Bronson of Porterville, California.

Robert “Bob” was a native of Ontario, California and grew up in Orange County attending high school and marrying Nan Sullivan of Tustin, California. Robert moved his family to Redstone, Colorado in 1969 and was a food salesman for Westman Foods. He opened and developed one of Westman Foods best territories in the towns of Aspen and Glenwood Springs. Colorado is where Bob developed long term relationships with many people and expanded his outlook of the great outdoors. Bob skied, hiked, camped, hunted and lived life with gusto, and was known for giving great parties!

After Colorado, Bob moved to Costa Rica and became a coffee farmer. Moving once again, Bob opened a fish market in Croton-on- the- Hudson, New York. Competition in that industry drove him to become a gardener caretaker on an estate in Purchase, New York. After many years he returned to California to be closer to his aging Mom and settled in La Quinta, California where he started a pool company named Better Pools. He married Laurie Levish whom he met in Yonkers, New York, and step-fathered Brett and Ashley Newton, of La Quinta, California. After ten years he retired from the pool business, and passed the business on to his grandson, Gavin Walsh. Bob’s final move was to be closer to his daughters/grandsons in Maine. He was employed by L.L. Bean and really loved the folks he worked with.

Bob was an avid sports enthusiast, enjoyed attending jazz festivals, the beach, enjoyed good food and loved to cook for his family and friends. He was kind, generous, a hard worker and approached any problem in an intelligent manner. Bob had the ability to succeed in whatever endeavor he undertook, and his integrity was beyond reproach. He was the type of man with whom it is a pleasure to be associated.