Beach, Robert Glenn 81 1/29/1929 3/12/2010 Robert G. Beach was born in Long Beach, Calif., to Wayne and Charlotte Beach. His family lived various places during his childhood including Seattle; Oakland, Calif.; Bonneville; Grand Coulee, Wash.; Republic, Wash.; and Redding and Catalina Island, Calif. Eventually the family moved to Portland, where he graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1947. At age 15, he began working in the grocery business, bagging potatoes. He continued working after high school at Bales Thriftway, later becoming store manager. He transferred to Oregon City Thriftway in 1965, and then to West Linn Thriftway where he was the wine buyer. He enjoyed helping customers with their wine selections. He retired from the grocery business in 1994 after 50 years. Remarkably, he only missed one day of work during that time. In 1967 he met Millie while they were working together. They were married in 1970, combining his family of four children and her family of five children. They built their dream home in 1988 in Oregon City. They purchased their first RV in 1994, began traveling and were active with their RV group, "Sweet Old Buddies." Later they sold their home and lived full-time in the motor coach for four years, spending winters in Big River, Calif., and summers as camp hosts in various Oregon state parks. In April 2009, they purchased a home and lived in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. Robert was a quiet, gentle person who loved children and animals. He was a courageous man who married a woman with five children and helped her raise them. Family vacations were spent at the beach with the nine children. He also enjoyed vegetable and flower gardening. He was an expert cook, and loved dining, fine wines and good cigars. Robert enjoyed walking in the desert along the Colorado River at Rio Del Sol RV Haven. The Oregon coast was also a favorite place for him. Survivors include his wife of 40 years, Millie Beach; his sister, Marilyn Caufman; sisters and brothers-in law, Shirley and Sam Flye and Nona and Gene Philipsen; children, Debra, Wayne, Inez, Jim, Michelle, Michel, Mark, Mat and Marty; 20 grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. A service will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, March 18, 2010, in the chapel at Riverview Abbey Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Oregon Humane Society or a charity of your choice. Published in The Oregonian on March 17, 2010