Bob Ellis was born in Joliet in 1940 to Margaret (Hanson) and Robert C. Ellis. His father died in 1943, after which Bob moved with his mother and brother, Ron (NCHS 1960), to Downers Grove. Bob and his brother did spend several months in the Bensenville orphanage before moving to Naperville in 1950.

Bob attended Washington Jr High School and Naperville Community High School, class of 1958. He went to college at the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign where he earned a degree in Electrical Engineering.

Bob married Mary Hultquist (NCHS 1958), and had two children, Robert and Laurie. Unfortunately, both children preceded Bob's passing.

Bob's career as an electrical engineer took him from Boston to Alaska to Shemya Island to Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Spokane, Washington. He changed his career to petroleum engineer in the late 1960's, working for Schlumberger Oil Services. In the late 1970's he changed again and became a marine engineer working on very large ships all over the world.

Bob married his second wife around 1990, and worked as a cattle farmer well into his 70's. He retired after his wife died in 2015, then moved from Texas to Arizona. He moved to Durant, Oklahoma, in 2018 to be near his grandchildren.

Bob lived a very full adventurous life. His fondest memories were of his childhood in Naperville. Long live the "Redskins" of NCHS. All who knew him will no doubt remember him.