Robert Clarence Hamer passed away March 1, 2013 in Alta Loma, California. He was 88 years old. Bob was raised in Michigan and graduated from Detroit’s Western High School in 1942. He was a World War II veteran, serving with the US Navy in the South Pacific.
After Bob was honorably discharged from the Navy, he decided he did not want to return to live in the Mid-West. He moved to California and enrolled at the University of Southern California. He was active with the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity, and in 1948 he met USC sorority girl Gamma Phi Beta Lucerne Sasine. Bob and Lucerne were married at the First Congregational Church in Los Angeles in January of 1949. Both Bob and Lucerne are USC graduates.
Bob loved the ocean, and he and Lucerne moved to Hermosa Beach shortly after their marriage. Their first son, Robert, Jr. was born in 1951, followed by Richard in 1952. In 1954 the Hamers moved to Redondo Beach where daughter Ann was born. During the Redondo years, Bob enjoyed sailing, walking, biking, and ocean swimming.
Bob worked as a mortgage banker for 38 years. When his company relocated in 1972, Bob and Lucerne moved to Pasadena. While in Pasadena, Bob served as Executive Vice President of First Interstate Mortgage Company. He was also on the Board of Directors of the California Mortgage Bankers Association. Bob retired in 1987, and he and Lucerne moved permanently to Carpinteria. They had purchased a place in 1984, when Lucerne, upon seeing Carpinteria for the first time, described it as “Hermosa Beach, 1938,” since it reminded her of the place where she grew up. Bob and Lucerne lived in Carpinteria for 28 years.
After the Hamers moved to Carpinteria, Bob resumed his beach walking and took up golf. Bob and Lucerne did some traveling, going to elder hostels with his sister Jane and her husband Art, to Europe in 1990 with son Rick to watch daughter Ann take a degree from Oxford University, and to Disney World in Florida and on a Panama Canal cruise with his sons Bob, Jr. and Rick.
Bob became involved in Carpinteria politics, campaigning for local candidates and speaking on behalf of community interests before the City Council and various community boards. Bob defined himself as a “novice curmudgeon”, although his friends and family may have felt he had obtained professional status. Bob was also an active member of Carpinteria’s Mobile Home Rent Stabilization Board, Carpinteria Mobile Home Owners’ Alliance, Carpinteria Community Church, Carpinteria Valley Museum of History, Friends of the Carpinteria Library, Carpinteria Senior Citizens, Inc., and the American Civil Liberties Union. He also served as President of Vista de Santa Barbara, Inc. He was a life-long Democrat, and was a proud and articulate advocate on behalf of liberal candidates and causes. He was also a faithful alumnus and loyal supporter of USC.
Bob is survived by Lucerne, his wife of 64 years, sons Bob, Jr. (Mary) and Rick, daughter Ann, granddaughter Lesa (Scott), great grandchildren Cory, Lily, and Ridge, sister Jane Day, and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his grandson Eric.
Robert Hamer was an honest and decent man who dearly loved his family and led an honorable life. He was a talented amateur writer and artist. He was dynamic, decisive, and intelligent, and will be missed by all.
A memorial celebration of Bob’s life will be held Saturday, April 6, 2013 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the parish hall of Carpinteria Community Church, 1111 Vallecito Road, Carpinteria, CA. Those who knew and cared for Bob are invited to come and share their memories with the family.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Bob’s name in support of Alzheimer’s research, St. Jude’s Children Hospital, or the local Hospice agency of your choice. To leave an online memory or condolence, please visit www.wrhsb.com.
Arrangements by Welch-Ryce-Haider Funeral Chapels.
