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| Wills
Wing - Remembrances of Rob Kells |
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Rob Kells passed away on August 9th, 2008 after battling prostate cancer for nearly two years. Rob was our friend and business partner for more than thirty years, and our sense of loss at his passing is inexpressible. For those of you who knew Rob personally, we know you will understand, and we know that you share our loss.
Add Your Remembrance · View images/slideshow of Rob |
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08/09/10
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It has been two years since Rob passed away. Just to let everyone know... His daughters are doing great! They all got together for lunch today, just to be with one another for support. Cara is married to a great guy named Demetri with an almost one year year old baby girl named Dina and she and her little family are happy, healthy and doing great. Yes, Rob would have been a Grandpa! Maddie got married in January to her awesome husband Paul. Rob would have had the time of his life at their wedding. The youngest Amy is off to Flagstaff (NAU) for college in a few weeks. Wow.. how life just moves on. Rob would have been very proud of his girls right now and how they have helped eachother through a pretty up and down rollercoaster ride of emotions over these past two years! Thank you for letting me post this update! His true legacy lives strong in his children and grandchild!
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- Cathy Rusk (formery Kells)
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05/12/10
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Rob was the first and only person I ever saw loop a hang glider. It was at a small hill in the finger lakes of New York, and everyone was doing sled runs to a target. It was about noon and Rob hooked a thermal and went up and up. I said "what is he doing?" to a friend nearby. Myh friend said: "that's Rob Kells - I think he's going to do a loop."
Rob didn't just do one loop, he did three or four. What a guy. I am so glad he had a strong Christian witness - the world needs more people like him. I never got to meet him personally, but I hope to fly with him out thru the stars- oh yeah! I've pretty much retired from flying, but feel fortunate to have been part of a sport that had people like Rob Kells in it.
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- Gale Boocks
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04/17/10
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Rob taught me to wear my seat belt. He came to Chattanooga in the early 80s in his red Z for a demo days event. When ever I got in with him, he would always say buckle up, I don't want you in my lap if I have to do any fancy driving. And he meant it too.
One evening we were pulling into a parking lot somewhere and he spotted an open space. He gunned it and just as he came even with the space, he kicked the rear end around to line up perfectly and pulled in. As we exited the car a wuffo approached and asked "Did you do that on purpose?" Rob didn't miss a beat, he said "Of course, you don't want to be doing stuff like that by accident." With that great grin he had. To this day, I am uncomfortable without a seat belt on in a car and think about him every time I buckle up.
I also catch myself still using Robisms as Paulie called them.
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- Tom Phillips
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11/08/09
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There were so many of us who grew up through hang gliding over the years as teenagers. I remember the first time I met Rob in the 70's, and being a female pilot, my first impression was "here we go again another cocky pilot",; but over time we all matured through the sport, and went our different direction were ever the wind blew us or cloud street took us...I ended up in Hawaii, and miss all my big brothers and sisters of hang gliding that I met through this great sport..I wish all those that are still around peace and to those who have gotten their wings "a hu hou Kakou" til we meet again......Aloha Eileen
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- Eileen Adames-Debauche
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08/10/09
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I run a business selling power hand tools, with after the sale support and service. I am also a hang glider pilot and have met Rob a few times at Wills Wing either picking up a new glider or having an old one repaired. I have modeled my sales business after 'Rob's Way' - treating all customers as a friend and going out of my way for each and every one of them.
Rob was a person that I said to myself would be nice to 'get to know' if only circumstances were different.
As you can see, Rob made an indelible impression on me with my business AND in my life. I, too, shall never forget him.
Thanks Rob.
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- Jim Shaw
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08/10/09
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As we mark the one year anniversary of the loss of Rob Kells, our friend and business partner for more than 30 years, we’d like to take a moment to reflect, to say thank you, and to share some thoughts with you on where we are, and where we’re headed.
First, we’d like to thank all of you for the support you extended to Rob during his nearly two year battle with his illness. Your thoughts, your prayers, your phone calls and emails, meant a great deal to him, and to us.
And we’d like to thank you for the support you have shown to Wills Wing, both during Rob’s illness and since his passing.
In his position as president, and head of sales at Wills Wing, Rob was the most visible “face” of the company, and his natural and persistent inclination to treat each customer as a personal friend was a big part of how Wills Wing pilots felt about their relationship to the company. We know that many of you were concerned about what would happen to Wills Wing without Rob’s presence. At the same time, most of us learned early on in our participation in hang gliding that we could lose a close friend at any time, and that life does go on, however hard it may be to imagine that it will.
And Wills Wing has, and will go on. We are fully committed to the future, and to moving forward. Steve Pearson has assumed the lion’s share of Rob’s responsibilities for conducting demo days, and we have already held six successful demo events thus far in 2009. Steve, Mike and Linda have picked up the remainder of Rob’s administrative and customer support functions, and each of the test pilots are flying a few extra gliders a month to make up for the ones Rob can no longer fly. We saw a significant downturn in sales that began when the worst of the financial crisis hit early in 2008, but that decline bottomed out and began to recover early in this year, and we’ve seen higher sales levels than last year in each of the last four months. We’ve kept our delivery times reasonably low this year, we’ve enjoyed some significant successes with the T2’s and T2C’s, and the company is on solid footing in all respects. In all, we are re-dedicated to being the best company we can be; to designing and building the best gliders, to providing the best service of which we are capable, and to treating each of our customers as a friend. And we are fully confident that, with your continued support, we’ll succeed at that.
We won’t forget Rob. We acknowledged his memory with a brief program during our Wallaby event this spring. The USHPA has created a special award in his memory. James Tindle ran the first annual Rob Kells Memorial Competition this past spring. We will remember Rob every time we get together with old friends to celebrate hang gliding, and every time we make new friends in the same pursuit. And we’ll go on.
And we thank you all for being a part of it.
Sincerely,
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- Mike and Linda Meier, and Steve Pearson
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07/21/09
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Tonight I was searching the web to find details of our family friend, Jan Cameron, who passed away this morning from cancer. This time on the web has led me down the hangliding path - which I had not been in many years, since my brother Chris Bulger passed away in 1985. I am very sad to learn of Rob Kell's passing. He was one of my idols and I always enjoyed seeing him at competitions or when he visited Chris in the Pacific Northwest. Now our brothers are flying again in heaven!
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- Michelle Diaz (Shelly Bulger)
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04/14/09
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Over the years I have had the opportunity to talk to Rob by phone and in person a number of times.
He was always upbeat...but focused. Which I am sure he brought to this battle too.
I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2005, and I couldn't agree more with Rob's statement to get yourself checked annually.
Guys done tend to talk about health items, unless it is some type of a "badge of honor", but we need to talk about this cancer more. Women have done an incredible job with breast cancer and we must do the same about prostate cancer.
Warm breezes, Rob.
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- Pat Caulfield
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03/22/09
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Dear Rob,
only the good die young.
May your last Wings lift you forevermore.
Manfred
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- Manfred Boehm / Fliegerboehm, Germany
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03/10/09
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It has been many months since I'd last spoke with Rob. I'm so sad to hear he has passed. I met Rob many years ago when his daughter, Maddie and my son Adrien were in first grade together. We were on a fieldtrip and I remember this guy in a red shirt who kept making reference to soaring birds in the park. He kept taking the attention of the kids away from the tour guide. But he had such enthusiasm and all the kids were asking questions, so the tour guide just let it slide. I was a paraglider pilot and noticed his Wills Wing shirt so we bonded right away. He made me happy every time I would see him. . for many years thereafter. I had some special moments with him and I think of him from time to time. His strength, kindness and peace will forever reside in my heart.
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- Monica Edwards
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