Robert ‘Bob’ Horstman
Robert “Bob” Horstman, 99, went to his Father three days before his 100th birthday, at his home in Pagosa Springs.
Bob and his wife of 52 years, Rosemary, fell in love with Pagosa and moved here in 1997. He married Rosemary Welsh in 1951.
His passions in life were for photography, music and cutting horses.
Robert was born on Sept. 6, 1923, in Casper, Wyo. He had two sisters, Marjorie (Clements) and Mary (Maxon).
After attending the University of Wyoming for three years, Bob enlisted in the Enlisted Reserve Corps on June 9, 1942, and active duty with the U.S. Army on July 12, 1943.
He was assigned as a combat medic to the 273rd Infantry Regiment, 69th Infantry Division. Bob crossed the English Channel in a winter storm with the 273rd Medical Detachment in an LST (landing ship tank), disembarking in the harbor of Le Havre, France, on the night of Jan. 23, 1945. He was engaged in 89 days of combat during the Rhineland and Central Europe Campaigns.
After the war, Bob earned his medical degree at Temple University, becoming an orthopedic surgeon. He was a professor at the USC Medical Department for one year. In 1962, he served as the team doctor for the Los Angeles Lakers. He practiced medicine for 37 years.
Bob always had a deep, quiet love for God and his country.
Bob is survived by his son, Russ; four grandchildren, Ashley (Thayer), Colin, Erica (Zagorski) and Jeremy; and three great-grandchildren.
Services for Bob will be Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, at 10 a.m. at Hilltop Cemetery in Pagosa Springs.
