Stephen Michael (Mike) Roberts |
| Posted 2009-08-07 by Sharon |
| The Wickenburg Sun, Wickenburg, AZ March 7, 2007, p. A13 Stephen Michael Roberts, age 67, went home to be with our Lord Sunday, Feb. 25 in Sun City West, Ariz. A memorial celebration of Mike's life was held the next day at the First Presbyterian Church of Wickenburg, with Pastor Sam Weinschenk leading friends and family as they bid farewell. Born Aug. 23, 1939 to Meredith and Sarah Sprigg Dolby in Warsaw, Ind., Mike and his brother David were later adopted by Walter Roberts when their mother remarried. During the war years, the boys lived on the farm with grandparents Roy and Bessie Sprigg. The Roberts family settled in Indianapolis, and the brothers returned summers to stay on the farm. Some of Mike's fondest childhood memories were made then, to live forever in his heart. After graduating from Broad Ripple High School in suburban Indianapolis, Mike's sense of adventure and wanderlust began. He joined the United States Air Force in 1959 and while stationed at March Air Force Base near Riverside, Calif., met his wife Priscilla. Mike finished his active service in Japan, returning to the states May 1963. He and Priscilla were married in June 1965, establishing their first home in Westminster, Calif., where Mike attended college and worked in the aerospace industry for Douglas Aircraft in nearby Long Beach. His daughter Shelley was born in 1969. The family next moved to Indianapolis where Mike worked in the air cargo forwarding field for Airborne Freight, with a transfer to Louisville, Ky. Mike used to say, “When my ship comes in, where will I be? At an airport!” It was from there that Mike began his foreign work, leaving for Saudi Arabia with Fluor Corp. Pris and Shelley would meet Mike to vacation together, visiting England, Spain, France and Morocco. Such adventures! Mike's next assignment took him to the United Emirates. By then his family had moved to Silver City, N.M., to be near his wife's parents. It was there that Mike joined Bechtel, metal and mining division. But off he went again, this time to Borneo, in the petro/chemical division. “His girls” moved to Wickenburg to be near Pris' elderly father and mother. Finally, Mike was able to take domestic assignments, which included Houston, Texas, and Chicago, Ill., in the nuclear power division. His last assignment for Bechtel was in Mexico/El Paso, Texas. He retired in 1997, returning to Wickenburg where he has lived since. Mike will be missed. His clever wit and gentle humor made him a friend to many, as he fought his long battle with lung disease. Never complaining, a devoted husband and loving father, he touched so many lives over the years. One of his favorite passages from the Bible, II Timothy 4:7, always brought a tear to his eye. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Mike is survived by his wife Pricilla; daughter and son-in-law Shelley and Chuck Brinkman of Wickenburg; brother David and wife Alayne; nephew Tony Roberts of Tulsa, Okla.; nephew Scott and wife Sharman; and great-nieces Amanda, Emmalene, Olivia; and great-nephew Duncan Roberts of Springfield, Mo. Arrangements were under the direction of David's Desert Chapel Funeral Home in Wickenburg. |
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