GROSSMAN, Robert (Bob)

The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona Tuesday, May 08, 2012 Robert and Joan Grossman Robert Grossman, born April 10, 1924, in Chicago, died by self-inflicted gunshot on May 3, 2012. His wife Joan (Joanne) (Peters) Grossman, born July 14, 1926, in Williamsport, Pa., died on May 4, 2012, from the previous night's gunshot by Bob. Both had terminal diseases and they chose to die together. They had been married for nearly 64 years and continued to love each other deeply. Bob and Joanne married just after their graduation from Penn State (1948) with degrees in industrial engineering and journalism. He was a navigator in the Army Air Corps/Air Force, then worked in various engineering jobs until he ended up in the nuclear industry. He was Chief Safety Officer for the first nuclear Merchant Marine vessel, the Savannah. He also developed many technologies used in the nuclear industry. She was a journalist, then a stay-at-home mother and then a technical editor. In 1964, she started the first racially integrated Campfire Girls group in Montgomery County, Md. Bob and Joanne were always very concerned for the environment, and they designed their house in Gaithersburg, Md. with many energy-efficiencies very uncommon in 1963. Bob was very involved with various efforts for clean air and water. They were always free thinkers who tried to teach their daughters to think for themselves, and they regularly told their children they did not believe in "conspicuous consumption." They retired to Prescott in 1980, designing the first passive solar house on Solar Heights Drive. They became passionately involved with the Yavapai Chapter of the AZ Archeological Society, as well as being active with Prescott Creeks, the Sierra Club, and Citizens Water Advocacy Group. They were very involved with the Prescott Unitarian Universalist Fellowship from the time of their arrival in town, while also meeting with the Humanists. Joanne had been a long-time volunteer with Planned Parenthood in Maryland, and she was the prime mover for creation of the Prescott Planned Parenthood. They are survived by their daughters Catherine Ates of Stanwood, Wash. and Janet Grossman (Howard Mechanic) of Prescott; as well as Joanne's brother and sister and their families back east. A celebration of life will be at 3 p.m., Saturday, June 9, 2012 at Prescott Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall, 945 S. Rancho Vista Drive, Prescott. In lieu of flowers, please donate to any of the above organizations for which they volunteered. Information provided by survivors.