MY BROTHER-IN –LAW, BOB ENGLE

                        By Sara Sherman Purdue

   Bob was a wonderful brother in law and a great uncle to our children Wilbur and Grace as well as a farmer of Ebey’s Prairie.

   At the age of 5 he could drive a tractor and at 9 he cultivated fields of squash all by himself. Without a doubt he had an outstanding work ethic, which he helped instill in the countless young people including our son Wilbur and all of Bob and Cheryl’s children, and his future son in law Rusty Bailey all of whom worked on the Engle Farm,

   He had a deep historical knowledge of what and how crops were grown on the Prairie. After all as a fourth generation Coupeville Farmer, he grew up listening to his father Robert Engle,, Grandfather Carl Engle and  his Uncle Bill Engle talk farming. He and I both shared an interest in the raising of Rockwell Beans, an Prairie heritage bean that started its Prairie life right at the Elijah Rockwell home where Bob and Iris Engle raised their close knit family of 5 on the Engle Farm.

   Bob also had a sophisticated knowledge of how to do large scale farming with big machinery that he used with great skill. To watch him and his farming team plow the rich black fields domed with blustery blue skies swirling with seagulls was simply spiritual.

   Bob was generous with his skills and land.  He provided land for our garden, working the land up in the spring.  When son Wilbur had his own land, Uncle Bob would swing over and do the occasional plowing of a section.  He shared farm pear and cherry trees even watering the pears. He even shared his long red barn and cow pasture with Cleo, niece Grace’s horse. We weren’t the only lives he enriched and others can tell their own stories and I hope they will.

   Bob loved to farm and part of what brought joy to him was farming with his family the nature of which changed through the years.  Brother Len, Bob’s son Bob, and Bob’s wife Cheryl were his last family farm partners. Through the years I noted that lots of retired men with machinery skills were a part of the farming team: Bob Hancock, Glen Lynch, Bill Grasser, Dave Wells, Gill Hassler, Carlos Sr and  Jr Partidas.

   I am 71 and I lived in Coupeville all of my life just like Bob did. Early memories of Bob include Bob playing the trombone for the morning patriotic music in the connecting hall between elementary and high school wings. All the classroom doors would be open, the students standing at attention and bandleader John Hopkins would lift the wand.

   Bob and his brothers Len and Jim went to the 4H Fair and as fellow Dairy Club Members sister Cheryl and I went too.  Bob and his brothers were all snappy looking in their white outfits leading those big Holstein cows around.  They got a lot of the top prizes.

   Later Bob played on the Coupeville basketball team and in fact the first date he had with his future wife Cheryl Sherman was taking her to a high school basketball game. Basketball games were the place to be.

   Bob was part of a big family with lots of cousins.  His brother and sisters were close.  I can see the whole troupe marching into the Coupeville Methodist Church and take up most of a pew. Cheryl tells me that the Engle family enjoyed many picnics at their family campsite on Madrona Beach.  Bob himself told me how he and his brothers used to slip away to go fishing with the town kids at the Coupeville wharf.

   He was lucky enough to find his true love, my sister, Cheryl Sherman, and the good luck to marry her.  She was a farmer’s daughter, a teacher, a farm accountant, and a loving and sweet wife all of their 49 and a half years of marriage. Bob and Cheryl supported each other through the hard challenges of farming and the hard challenges of health. They enjoyed their lives and most especially their family.

   Three wonderful children, Bob, Donna, and Bonnie brought joy and more wonderful family. I watched as Cheryl and her family poured through the family pictures and ever so many were with the grandkids cozied up to Grandpa usually both of them asleep. He loved his family, friends, and town. 

   Rest in peace, Bob, you are well remembered and well loved.