Robert Lee Hesselink

Robert Lee (Bob) Hesselink was delivered by his grandmother during a March 12, 1937 blizzard in the Upper Peninsula town of Rudyard, Michigan. He stepped into the arms of Jesus August 5, 2024. He was the first child of Andrew and Theresa (Cornwell) Hesselink and grew up, like most ‘Yoopers”, a self-reliant person, comfortable with machinery and with a can-do attitude. He accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord as a child and this decision impacted his entire life.  Bob graduated from Rudyard High School., then Michigan State University, with an M.S. in the field of agriculture. Bob met his future wife, Carolyn Lee Paty, while he was at MSU and they were married 63 years, raising three children, Kevin, Kimberly and Kerry, while living in Michigan.  Bob’s occupations included some 50 years in the fields of agriculture with Michigan Farm Bureau, Production Credit Assoc. and Farmers Home Administration, banking, and housing with Florida Non-Profit Housing, and Coldwell Banker Realty.  They joined The Gideons International and served together for some 50 years. Bob gave the Gideon report in dozens of churches and helped distribute thousands of Scriptures in hotels and motels, hospitals, schools and colleges in Michigan and in Florida.  They moved and settled in Sebring, Florida, in the late 80’s with new job prospects.  Members of a fundamental church, wherever they lived, Bob served at Sebring First Baptist as Sunday School Superintendent for 20 years and more than 30 years as an active deacon. He believed faithful attendance and giving were integral with serving his Lord.  Bob also joined Rotary Int’l, serving as President of the Sebring Sunrise Club, flying with a veteran on their Rotary Honor Flights to Washington, D.C., and helping with their many service projects.  Bob was a lifetime fan of all MSU sports, never lost his love for growing things, and could be found many evenings walking beside Lake Jackson, enjoying God’s creation.  He leaves behind his wife, Carolyn, children Kevin Lee (Tanya) Hesselink, Kimberly Lee (Dan) Falbo, and Kerry Lee Hesselink, eight grandchildren, six great-grands, and siblings: Barbara (Darvin) Suter, Patricia Kanerva, Ron (Juli) Hesselink and Eddie (Linda) Hesselink.  A celebration of his life will be held at First Baptist Church, Sebring, on Friday, August 23, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to The Gideons International, P.O. Box 1635, Sebring, FL 33871-1635 or to First Baptist Church, 200 E. Center Avenue, Sebring, FL 33870.

Arrangements entrusted to:
Stephenson-Nelson Funeral Home
Sebring, Florida
Online condolences may be left at
www.stephensonnelsonfh.com