Robert Daniel Wilkerson, age 73, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Sunday, April 30, 2023, at the Via Christi Hospital in Pittsburg, Kansas. He was born January 8, 1950, in Ft. Scott, the son of Bob Wilkerson and Nelda Mead. He attended Ft. Scott schools and graduated from Ft. Scott High School with the Class of 1968. He married Elizabeth Lifer on May 25, 1968, a day after graduation. Together they had a son and a daughter. Although this marriage ended in divorce, Bob and Elizabeth never left each other’s side. She preceded him in death on February 15, 2013, after forty-seven years together.
Bob worked as a mechanic primarily at Ray Shepherd Motors for over twenty years. He later took a sales position at Scotty’s Liquor and later Don’s Spirits & Wines where he worked for several years. Bob will be remembered for his eccentric personality and dry sense of humor. As a mechanic, Bob enjoyed tinkering on cars and riding his motorcycle as well as watching NASCAR and attending car shows. In earlier years, Bob enjoyed roller skating and waterskiing as well as playing softball and bowling. Bob was musical and had the ability to play the guitar and piano by ear. He enjoyed spending quiet time outdoors. He will be greatly missed by his family and those who loved him.
Survivors include his son, Donald Wilkerson and wife, Shelli of Ft. Scott and his daughter, Heather Probasco and ex-husband, Collin of El Dorado, Kansas, a bonus son, Robert Raygoza and wife, Pam, of Mississippi. Also surviving are a brother Alvin Beerbower and wife, Mary of Uniontown, Kansas, two sisters, Vicki Spencer and Sheila Rogers both of California and his stepmother, Shirley Wilkerson of Anderson, California, his best friend of fifty-years, Chuck Read and his fur babies, Rippel and Paws. In addition to his former wife, Elizabeth, Bob was preceded in death by his parents, his stepfather, Lawrence Beerbower, two brothers, Roy and Allen Wilkerson and a sister, Linda Wilkerson.
Rev. Marty Dewitt will conduct a celebration of life service at 11:00 A.M. Friday, May 5th at the Cheney Witt Chapel. A time of visitation will follow the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in his honor to either Care to Share, who helped immensely through Bob’s battle with tongue and throat cancer, or the Allen County Animal Rescue Facility in Iola. Donations ay be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
