Funeral services for Robert Lance "Bobby Walton", age 61, will be held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, March 13, 2019, at Spearsville Baptist Church, in Spearsville, La.
Bobby was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and in his early years moved with his parents as his father was stationed around the United States, serving in the U.S. Air Force. From 3rd grade through 9th grade, Bobby and his family lived in Huntland, Tennessee. For high school, he lived in Spearsville, Louisiana, and graduated from Bernice High School in Bernice, Louisiana. As a child, he was thoughtful and quiet, spending many hours making intricate model cars and planes.
After high school, Bobby wanted to join the U.S. armed forces, but at less than 120 pounds, he did not meet the weight requirements. As a sign of the determination that was a hallmark of his personality, Bobby went home and drank smoothies and shakes until he was able to join the U.S. Navy, at 121 pounds. He served 11 years, in two separate tours of duty, primarily stationed at Norfolk, Va.
For many years, he served on a frigate, doing several months of duty each year in the Mediterranean Sea. He took advantage of the opportunity and used his shore leave to travel throughout southern Europe, including France, Italy and Spain, where he loved bargaining in the open-air markets. His Navy duties also took him to Northern Ireland, Bahrain, Djibouti, and Egypt. Because he loved the beach, he also visited places such as the Bahamas and the Virgin Islands. Bobby was quick to meet people, and at almost every port he wound up having coffee or eating dinner with locals.
In 1990–91, in response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, the United States came to the aid of its Kuwaiti allies and sent troops to the first Gulf War. Bobby served in Operation Desert Storm aboard the U.S.S. Scott, a destroyer in the Persian Gulf, often under enemy fire and working to rescue hundreds of war refugees.
Bobby ended his military career as a recruiter stationed in Nashville, Tennessee, near where he had grown up as a child. He loved the area so much that he stayed after leaving the military. He bought a lovely house and worked as a customer service manager at Carroll's Shell Station on a busy Nashville thoroughfare for more than 10 years.
In 2013, after the owner sold the business, Bobby moved back to Spearsville to be closer to his mother and family. He attended South Arkansas Community College, earning an associate's degree in mechanical technology, and he worked as a volunteer for the museum in Spearsville, the Yellow House, providing technical assistance in order for the museum to publish its first book.
Bobby's attention to detail was put to good use in his projects, in which he transformed natural products into works of art, including creating wind chimes from bamboo and wall hangings, such as fleur-de-lis and Christian crosses, from cypress wood. He was kept busy with DIY projects for his mother, including laying kitchen tile countertops and building a new fireplace for her. He loved hunting, and perhaps, even more, he loved going to the hunting camp for long hours of sitting and visiting with people. A lifelong cat lover, he had a Maine Coon Cat named Oz and had been converted to a dog lover with his mother's pet, Benji.
In 2017 Bobby was diagnosed with throat cancer and was treated at the Veterans Administration hospital in Shreveport. He became good friends with every nurse, technician and doctor he met. After each treatment, he would stay at the Wyndham in Shreveport, and the staff became so fond of him that when he had his last round of chemo, they treated him to a small goodbye celebration. Bobby's cancer returned in late 2018, and he died of complications related to the disease at 12:02 a.m. on March 9, 2019.
Bobby is survived by his mother, Barbara Stone Walton; sister, Shana Walton; niece, Barbara Helen Schmehl; three aunts, Floy Rea, Madelyn Crain, and Shirley Honeycutt; one uncle, Larry Crain; and five first cousins.