Mr. Robert Grooters, age 85, of Alton, passed away on Friday, February 13, 2009, at the Orange City Area Health System Hospital.

There will be a funeral service on Monday, February 16, at 10:00am, at the Alton Presbyterian Church in Alton. Mr. Ronald Brink will officiate. Interment will follow at the West Lawn Cemetery in Orange City. Visitation will be after 5:00pm on Sunday, with the family present from 5:00pm to 7:00pm, at the Oolman Funeral Home in Orange City.

Robert William was born on September 25, 1923, at Boyden, the son of Albert Edward and Wilhelmina “Minnie” Grooters. His family lived at Boyden, Sheldon, Emmetsburg, Algona, and Eagle Grove. After graduating from high school, he served in the United States Navy from 1941 to 1946.

He served on the U. S. S. Hornet aircraft carrier. The hornet was best known for its role as the carrier that launched Jimmy Doolittle's planes, which were the first to bomb Japan. At the age of 18, he survived several hours in the ocean after the bombing and sinking of his ship in 1942. For his military service, he was awarded several medals, including the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.

On February 20, 1947, Bob married Henrietta A. Den Hartog at Orange City. They first lived at Orange City and Everly, but since 1951, they made their home in Alton. Mrs. Grooters passed away on June 12, 1998, in Orange City.

He was assistant manager at the Slagle Lumber Yard in Alton. He then worked with ready-mix concrete at Slagle's, and later was employed by Kepp Construction and the Vogel and Vande Brake Paint Store, both in Orange City. In recent years, he was self-employed as a carpenter and painter.

Mr. Grooters was a member of the Alton Presbyterian Church, where he served as a deacon and an elder. He also belonged to the Blooming Prairie Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Disabled American Veterans. He enjoyed woodworking and reading.

Survivors include his four children and their spouses, Jim and Shirley Grooters, of Simi Valley, California; Vicki and Joe Wacek, of Blooming Prairie, Minnesota; Dan and Lynn Grooters, of Des Moines; and Bonnie and Terry Goslinga, of Minneapolis, Minnesota; fifteen grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren; and a sister and her husband, Carole and Karl-Heinz Nilsson.

In addition to his parents and wife, he was preceded in death by a brother and his wife, James and Leona Grooters.

Memorials may be directed to the Alton Chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous or the Alton Presbyterian Church.