Robert Curtin Atcheson died on 12/14/2014 in Vian, Oklahoma, from complications of kidney disease He was 75. At the time of his death, he was a resident of the Vian Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Vian, He was born on 9/24/1939 in Houston, Texas, and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by his parents, William H. and Dorothy E. (Williams) Atcheson.
Bob was 8 when his family moved from Houston, to Tulsa. An active and daring youngster, he loved horses and participated in several local horse shows during his school years. He was fascinated by the life of the cowboy. The first time he was allowed to go to the rodeo alone, he returned with the prize money for riding a Brahma bull. Despite his mother's disapproval, he continued to follow the rodeo circuit and ride Brahma bulls in his late teens. As an adult, he was rarely seen without his black Stetson and cowboy boots.
As a boy and young man, Bob was socially active. He truly valued his friends and prided himself on loyalty to them. He attended Lee School, Holy Family Elementary School, the Judson School in Arizona, and graduated from Cascia Hall Preparatory School. While at Cascia Hall, Bob excelled in football, a sport that continued to be an interest throughout his life. Following high school, he attended and graduated from the University of Tulsa, where he was a member of Sigma Chi. His later years were marked by his devotion to the Rosary which he prayed several times daily.
Bob's life after college was marked by his struggles with bipolar disorder. For a time, he developed his own business in book sales, but as a result of his illness, he spent much of the last 30 years in care settings outside of Tulsa, though he always considered the city his home. Rich memories of his time at Cascia Hall and TU often gladdened his later years.
Bob was predeceased by his parents and his older brother,
Richard (Dick) Atcheson. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Maryellen (Atcheson) and Dale Vander Sluis of Napa, California; his sister-in-law, Jean C. Atcheson of Princeton, New Jersey; nephews W. Nicholas Atcheson of Providence, Rhode Island, John William Vander Sluis of Seattle, Washington, and Matthew James Vander Sluis of Oakland, California; and nieces Dorothy B. Atcheson of London, UK, Katharine C Atcheson of New York, NY, and Susanne Wooldridge of Woodland Park, Colorado.
A Rosary and Mass of Christian burial will be offered for Bob at 2:00 pm on January 12, 2015 in the chapel of Tulsa's Calvary Cemetery, to be followed by interment there. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Brain & Behavior Research Foundation - https://bbrfoundation.org/