Posted on 12/26/2019
Frank Robert Kroner, Jr., "Bob" to those who knew him, passed away on Wednesday, December 18, 2019 after a brief illness at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. Bob was born on July 4, 1939 in Nashville, Tennessee to Bob and Charlotte Kroner.
Bob graduated valedictorian from Castle Heights Military Academy in 1957, then graduated in 1961 from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and had the distinguished honor of receiving his diploma directly from President John F. Kennedy as a top ten-percent student in academics. Bob went on to be part of Admiral Rickover's nuclear engineering program and graduated from M.I.T. in 1969 with a master’s degree in Nuclear Engineering.
During his naval service, Bob spent the bulk of his career working at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. He served as the Advanced Industrial Management Program Nuclear Planning Manager and later as the Director of Radiological Controls. In his post-naval career, he worked in real estate for Stockton Realty and most recently with Ponte Vedra Beach Realty Corporation.
Bob loved genealogy and researched extensively across many family trees that he descended from as well as his kin. He loved to paint and when he was younger, enjoyed gardening, the great outdoors, golf and tennis, as well as, being directly involved with two homes he built.
He is survived by his beloved wife, Patti; her daughter, Lori Dufresne; her son, Dan Dufresne. Additionally, Bob is survived by his only son, Shep (Debbie); grandchildren, Owen and Natalie. He is further survived by brothers, Randy and Augustus; as well as many, many cousins from the Rogers family.
SERVICES: Memorial Service pending at Christ Church, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Funeral arrangements entrusted to Hardage-Giddens Funeral Home, Jacksonville Beach, Florida.
Published in Seacoastonline.com from Dec. 21 to Dec. 24, 2019