Robert E. Villarreal

Robert (Bob) Estrada Villarreal departed from this earthly plane on November 20, 2020. He was born in Socorro, Texas on May 5, 1940 (Cinco de Mayo) to Tomas and Delfina Villarreal. At the young age of 17, Robert enlisted in the United States Air Force to begin on odyssey of discovery and adventure that would define his life. He attended Ysleta High School, but completed his high school studies in 1961 at Topeka High School in Topeka, Kansas. Under Operation Bootstrap, Robert completed a program in Leadership and Business Management at Minot State University, North Dakota in 1975. He received an Associate of Arts degree in Construction Trades Technology from the Community College of the Air Force in 1976. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from Unity College in Maine in 1977. He served in the US Air Force for 22 years, including service in Vietnam in 1967-68. He was on the ground at Phu Cat Air Base through the prolonged Tet Offensive. During his military tenure, he was awarded various citations, medals and commendations, including the Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Commendation medal, Army and Air Force Good Conduct Medals. Upon his Air Force retirement in 1980, he launched a second career with the Department of Defense. In 1981 he assumed the position of Chief of Operations and Maintenance at Loring Air Force Base, Maine. In 1988 he was honored at Strategic Air Command Headquarters at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, as SAC Civilian Manager of the Year. In 1997, after the closure of Loring AFB, he was selected as Facility Manager for the Eastern Navajo Agency with the Department of Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs in Crownpoint, New Mexico. In this position he was responsible for the construction and maintenance of all the BIA schools in the Agency. Following his civil service retirement in 2006, Bob and his wife Maggie, returned to Maine, their home state of choice. In Maine he pursued various hobbies and pastimes through the years. In the late 60’s, after his stint in Vietnam, he took up woodworking at the Loring AFB Wood Hobby Shop and developed a passion for building grandfather clock cases. Later, he advanced to various furniture types—tables, benches, chests, cabinets, wall shelves. During the 70’s and 80’s, Bob was a competitive racquetball enthusiast and a long-distance runner. In the 90’s, his favorite all-time activity was the annual arduous canoe trip with his Mainiac buddies through the Allagash Wilderness Waterway in Northern Aroostook, Maine. After retirement, he toned down his activities to bicycling and swimming. For eleven years, a daily 6:00 am swim at the Lura Hoit pool in Hampden, Maine was followed by an afternoon bike ride through all the rural country roads in the area. Friends and colleagues will remember him as the consummate Patriot, always raising or saluting the American flag or passing out poppies, and rooting for the New England Patriots. He was a member of the American Military Engineers and a Life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 4633 of Maine. He married Magdalena (Maggie) Cisneros in 1961. Together, with their son and daughter, they traveled from Maine to California several times over, visiting Yosemite, Yellowstone, Mount Rushmore, Acadia, and other points of interest. Living close to the Northern border, they frequently ventured to the Canadian Maritimes, as well as New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba. Wanderlust was habit forming for Bob and Maggie as they continued to travel to most Western and Eastern European countries and to spend many summers in the United Kingdom. Robert is survived by his wife Maggie, son Robert Stephen of El Paso, daughter Cynthia Buckley of Quincy, Massachusetts, and three grandsons: Vincent Stephen, Xavier Stephen, and Edward Stephen, all of El Paso. Sunset Funeral Home in West El Paso is arranging a private service for immediate family members. Graveside Services at Fort Bliss National Cemetery will be held at a later date.