PAW PAW - Robert Earl Kern, 89, of Paw Paw, passed away June 2, 2017 at his residence.

Funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 10 at the Paw Paw United Methodist Church, 370 Wiley Ave., Paw Paw with Pastor Dave Holden officiating. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. until time of the service at the church. Interment will be at Wyoming Township Cemetery in Paw Paw.

Bob was born Sept. 27, 1927 in Sublette at Angear Hospital to Alfred and Clara (Bauer) Kern. He married his high school sweetheart, Gayle Willard, on June 8, 1946.

Survivors include his wife; two children, Ron (Shelby) Kern of Paw Paw and Diane Schumacher of Tulsa, Okla.; six grandchildren, Marc (Luz) Terranova of Chicago, Shane (Nikki) Kern of Glen Ellyn, Christian (Stephanie) Kern of Paw Paw, Zachary (Jennifer) Kern of Paw Paw, Christopher (Betsy) Kaiser of Broken Arrow, Okla. and Robbie (Tiffany) Kaiser of Tulsa, Okla.; and 12 great-grandchildren, Kennedy, Avery, Brooklyn, Samuel, Myles, Drew, Gage, Matt, Cooper, Kayden, Cameron and Avery.

He was preceded in death by his parents; one brother, Ivan Kern; and one sister, Doris Schlesinger.

Bob grew up in the Cottage Hill vicinity and attended the country school. He graduated from Paw Paw High School in 1945. In 1947, he and Gayle moved to the Willard farm and raised their children. In addition to farming, he operated Harley Rosenkrans’ feed grinder and worked at J.B. Inderidian (later Del Monte,) Del Monte, Asplundh Tree Service, Mayrath, Wurlitzer Piano and Marathon Electric. He also owned and operated a corn shelling business and even found time to drive a bus for School District 271. His favorite getaway was fishing in Canada with his brother, Ivan, which they did for many years. Summers were spent “at the lake” in Lake Mills, Wis. He was a member of the Paw Paw United Methodist Church, the Mendota Elks Lodge and the Mendota Moose.

Contributions in Bob’s memory will be directed to a charity of the family’s choosing.

Visit www.TormanFuneralHome.com to sign the online guest book.