| Notes |
- _P_CCINFO 2-14330
Bob graduated from Leigh (NE.) High School in 1965.
From THE COLUMBUS (NE.) TELEGRAM, July 31, 2002-
Robert W. Lake, 55, of Columbus, Nebraska died Tuesday, July 30, 2002 at his
home. Services will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church, Columbus, Nebraska
on Friday, August 02, 2002 at 10:30 AM with Rev. Timothy White officiating.
Military honors will be conducted by American Legion Honor Guard Hartman
Post 84. A private family interment will be at the Leigh City Cemetery in
Leigh, Nebraska at a later date.
Visitation will be held at Gass Haney Funeral Home on Thursday from 2:00 PM
- 8:00 PM and at Trinity Lutheran Church on Friday from 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
with a family prayer service at 10:15 AM. Memorials are suggested to the
Columbus Area Recreational Trails or Donors Choice.
Robert W. Lake was born November 9, 1946 in Columbus, Nebraska to Robert R.
and Evelyn (Gernstein) Lake. He graduated from Leigh High School, Leigh,
Nebraska. He attended Norfolk Jr. College in Norfolk, Nebraska where he
played football and was on the track team. He then attended Kearney State
College, Kearney, Nebraska where he was on the track team and a starter on
the football team. He graduated from Kearney State College in 1970.
On April 21, 1970 he entered the US Army and served two tours in Vietnam
before being honorably discharged on November 11, 1971. He and Ellen
Zimmerman were then married on December 22, 1971 at St. Luke's United Church
of Christ in Columbus. Robert received his Masters of Education Degree from
the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley in 1976. For seven years he
taught school in Randolph, Nebraska.
In 1979 he began his teaching career atLakeview High School in Columbus, retiring on May 23, 2002. At Lakeview HighSchool, Robert taught Biology, Physiology, was a football, basketball and
track coach. He also worked with the weight training program.
Robert enjoyed biking, hiking, mountain climbing, skiing, roller blading and
studying WWII history. Robert was a member of the following organizations:
twenty-five year member of the Nebraska Coaches Association, Nebraska State
Education Association, National Education Association, American Legion
Hartman Post 84, life member of the VFW Post 3704, Fraternal Order of Eagles
- AERIE 1834, B.P.O.E. - Elks, AYSO Soccer Coach, KTLX Radio Operator,
volunteer site coordinator and donor for the American Red Cross Blood Drive,
and was a supporter and volunteer for the Columbus Area Recreational Trails.
He loved spending time with his family and friends.
Robert is survived by:
Spouse - Ellen L. Lake - Columbus, NE
Mother - Evelyn Lake - Leigh, NE
Son - Jeff (Fiancé - Kerry Anderson) Lake - Omaha, NE
Sister - Pat (Darrell) Asche - Lincoln, NE
Sister - Janet (Rod) Johnsen - Topeka, KS
Brother - Don Lake - Omaha, NE
Sister-in-law -Faye Chrisman - Melbeta, NE
Many Nieces & Nephews
Robert was preceded in death by:
Father - Robert R. Lake
___________________________
Lake found dead
Former Lakeview coach respected by his colleagues
By DON STRECKER, Telegram Sports Editor
COLUMBUS -- Lakeview High School Superintendent Kurt Harrison called him
"one of the most respected teachers."
Lakeview teaching and coaching colleague Tom Lange and athletic director
Doug Moss marveled at his organization.
Scotus Central Catholic coach John Petersen considered him "a true
gentleman."
All of those things and more described Lakeview's Bob Lake, who was found
dead in his home Tuesday morning. The former teacher and coach was 55.
Services are 10:30 a.m. Friday at Trinity Lutheran Church at Columbus.
Visitation will be 2-8 p.m. Thursday at Gass Haney Funeral Home in Columbus
and 9:30-10:30 a.m. Friday at the church.
Besides teaching and coaching, Lake also was involved in other outdoor
activities, such as running, cycling and climbing.
"He was a pretty hardcore runner until he started to get chronic back
trouble," Lange said. "He took care of himself, which was the biggest
thing."
"I think that's what makes it shocking for everyone," Petersen said. "He was
in great shape ... and he really enjoyed life."
Lake taught and coached at Lakeview for 23 years before retiring at the end
of last school year. His teaching load was in biology and physiology, and
Harrison said Lake also had a class in weight training.
"Whenever (graduates) would come back to the school, the one teacher they
wanted to see was Mr. Lake, especially if they were in college and majoring
in his area," Harrison said. "He was a real tough teacher, but he was also
the most respected."
Respect for Lake carried over to the athletic arena. He was a head coach in
track and field and an assistant coach for football during his tenure at
Lakeview, but his greatest success came in girls basketball.
Lake was the girls basketball coach for 19 years, compiling a 217-144 mark
before stepping down at the end of the 1997-98 season.
"He was a tremendous organizer, one of most organized people I've ever
seen," said Lange, who worked with Lake for 21 years at the school.
"Everything was detailed, all the way down to how to handle certain things."
He coached the Viqueens to all five of their state tournament appearances,
including their very first in 1981. He also led Lakeview teams to state in
1984, '89, '90 and '91.
The lone Lakeview victory in those five appearances came in 1990 when the
Viqueens defeated Centura 44-40 before losing to Lincoln Pius X 54-43 in the
semifinals. Their last state appearance ended on a last-second shot in a
46-44 loss to Lexington.
"He was pretty amazing. He was a great coach," said Kara (Kapels) Greisen,
who played on the 1990 and 1991 state tournament teams. "He was very
motivational. He knew how to get kids to do what they needed to do."
He also knew how to deal with the players' parents, which made things much
easier for the athletic director, Moss said.
"He was pretty black and white. The kids and the parents knew what to
expect," Moss said. "He wasn't wavering, which I appreciated. They couldn't
complain because they knew what to expect.
"He was so successful as a girls basketball coach. It's a tough loss for the
community."
Lake's success in girls basketball was no more evident than in the Columbus
Holiday Tournament. He coached in 16 tournaments, leading the Viqueens to
the title five times. Of the first 14 tournaments, Lakeview or Scotus won
the girls title 12 times.
Petersen said Scotus' games with Lakeview were always tough with Lake on the
Viqueens' bench.
"He won with dignity, and he lost with dignity," said Petersen, who stepped
down as Scotus' head girls basketball coach one year after Lake called it
quits at Lakeview. "He was creative. He always had a new gimmick, and his
kids always played hard for him.
"Playing against his teams was lot of fun, and the crowds were always really
good. I felt Bob and I had a great relationship. He was a great guy and a
good friend."
Lake was the head girls track and field coach and took over the boys track
program in 1997 after boys coach Larry Whiting retired.
Lange said Lake was very competitive, an aspect of him that only people who
were around him a lot could see.
"He was low key, but he was a very intense person," Lange said. "He could
keep it under wraps. He had good control of it, but he was a very intense
coach. You could just see it. That's the part I'm going to miss the most."
|
1946 - 2002 (55 years)