Robert "Bob" Blake

Robert "Bob" Winfield Blake, 83, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Kensington, Connecticut, loving husband of Shirley (Spring) Blake, died Tuesday (April 10, 2018) at home in Kensington with his family at his side. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of the late Arthur and the late Lillian (LeGacy) Blake, he graduated from Cambridge Massachusetts High and Latin School, attended Tufts Dental School, and received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Hartford, and his Master's degree in Education from Central Connecticut State University. Bob received his commission from Massachusetts Military Academy, and served many years in the Connecticut National Guard. He taught biology at Windsor High School for thirty-three years, received the Distinguished Teacher Award for the state of Connecticut in 1972, as well as the Connecticut Outstanding Biology Teacher in 1968, and created and directed the Caduceus Club at Windsor High School for students interested in the medical profession. He was a member of St. Paul's Parish, and unselfishly devoting his life to family, friends, and students, he will be deeply missed. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughter and son-in-law, Alicia and Todd DeGroff of Kensington, and their two sons, Tyler and Kyle, two sisters, Beverly Blake Sullivan and her husband Peter, and Barbara J. MacNeill and her husband Alan, all of Massachusetts, a brother-in-law, Robert Spring and his wife Deborah, two nephews, Ryan MacNeill and Philip Spring, and five nieces, Barbara Wakefield, Marie and Kathy Blake, Jamie Beurklian, and Karen Spring. He was predeceased by a brother, William G. Blake. His family is grateful for the kind and loving care provided by the staff of Unison Health Services, and a special thanks to Carlene Sheltra for her extraordinary dedication. Funeral services will be held Saturday (April 14, 2018) at 9am from Porter's Funeral Home, 111 Chamberlain Highway, Berlin, with a Funeral Liturgy at 10am at St. Paul's Church. Burial will follow in St. Mary Cemetery, New Britain. Friends and relatives may call at the funeral home on Friday (April 13, 2018) from 5-7pm. Those who wish may make donations to The Connecticut Humane Society, 701 Russell Road, Rocky Hill, CT 06111, or to The American Heart Association, 1 Union Street, Suite 301, Robbinsville, NJ 08691-4183.