Robert Rider Clauss

Robert Rider \"Bob\" Clauss, Sr. was born April 18, 1924 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to William Arthur Clauss and Clara Wehrmann Clauss.

Bob graduated from Withrow High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania, with a degree in Math and Physics.  He continued his education throughout his career by taking courses at 12 different colleges and universities. 

Bob served 4 years in the U.S. Army, stationed mostly in Aberdeen, Maryland, where he worked on ballistics research for the war effort.  At Aberdeen Proving Ground, Bob was privileged to work with Dr. Gregory Breit who had supervised the earliest phase of development of the atomic bomb (later to become the Manhattan Project under Robert Oppenheimer).  He also had the privilege of working with Dr. Edwin P. Hubble who is now known for the Hubble Telescope. 

Bob\"™s early career included sales positions in the electronics and trucking industries.  In 1960, he set out on a new professional career path as a pension actuary that allowed him to combine his love of mathematics with business needs in the corporate world.  His actuarial career bridged the transition from slide rule calculations to sophisticated computer programing.  He became an expert computer programmer in several different programing languages and was at the leading edge of his profession in writing computer programs to perform actuarial calculations. After several successful years working with a prominent actuarial firm in Jacksonville, Florida, Bob joined Associated Coca Cola Company in Daytona Beach, Florida, where he had responsibility for insurance, pensions and benefits.  He retired as Corporate Secretary of Associated Coca Cola in 1982 and moved to Lynchburg, Virginia, where he founded The Lock Shop (Lock and Safe Technology Inc.), a full service locksmith business, that he managed in partnership with his son, the late Robert R. Clauss, Jr. of Rustburg. 

In 1993, Bob married Patricia Milnor Whitesell of Rustburg, and after his retirement from The Lock Shop in 1997, they resided in Ormond Beach, Florida, until returning to Lynchburg in 2010. 

Throughout his life, Bob was actively involved in a wide variety of hobbies and recreational activities.  At various stages of his life he was an expert skeet shooter and avid gun collector, portrait and landscape photographer who operated his own photo processing lab, and ham radio operator.  Bob also enjoyed hunting, fishing, golf, and he was an avid reader.

Bob is survived by his wife, Patricia Milnor Clauss, his former wife Patricia D. Sanders, three children: Kathleen Brousseau, Theresa Polk, Allen Clauss, his stepson Darryl Whitesell, 17 grandchildren, and 13 great grandchildren.   He was preceded in death by his parents and his son, Robert R. Clauss, Jr.

A Celebration of Life Service for Robert will be held Tuesday, August 6, 2013 at 2 pm in the Chapel of Tharp Funeral Home, Lynchburg, visitation will be one hour prior. 

Tharp Funeral Home and Crematory, Lynchburg (434-237-9424) is assisting the family.