Robert G. Sharp

SHARP, Robert Glenn

September 20, 1953 - October 16, 2024

Robert Glenn Sharp, 71, of Woodhaven, Michigan, passed away on October 16, 2024, peacefully with his wife and three daughters at his side. It was a sunny afternoon with a view of the blue sky over the river from his window in Wyandotte, with the Detroit skyline in the background, and freighters, which he loved, frequently passing by. He was a wonderful man who lived fully for the year and a half after his lung cancer diagnosis, facing his illness with the work ethic, reliability and persistence he demonstrated his entire life.

Bob loved learning about the world around him, a voracious reader and history buff to the extreme. With an introverted nature, a soft and kind heart, and sparkling blue eyes, he loved to experience all the stories, culture, flavors and natural wonders the world could offer him. At the same time, he loved Detroit, and he lived and died as a fan of all local sports, including the Tigers, the Red Wings, and most especially, the Lions.

Bob was born on September 20, 1953 in Detroit, the youngest child of Geraldine Marie Arbaugh and Glenn Mack Sharp. A sports lover growing up, he’d ride his bike down Michigan Avenue all the way from his family’s home in Dearborn to Detroit to watch baseball games from the bleachers at Tiger Stadium. After graduating Edsel Ford High School, he worked at Dearborn Public Schools as a janitor before studying skilled trades to become a metal mechanic and maintenance technician for the school district, where he worked until his retirement in 2009. His experience there made him a lifelong labor union advocate and public schools supporter.

Many people will miss Bob, but no one will miss him more than his wife of 48 years. Bob met his wife, Kathryn “Kathy” (Wojtylko) Sharp, in 1973 at a crowded bar in Redford. Tall, long-haired and handsome, he brazenly sat down at her and her girlfriend’s table that night, thus ruining their chances of dancing with other guys. When Kathy and her friend decided to leave, Bob said, “Do you mind if I call you in two weeks?” She gave him her number, and he called her right on time. They went on a date to a Red Wings game together. She liked him because he said he was nervous, and he liked her for her pretty brown eyes. A lifelong love began, and they married in 1976 in a red, white and blue Bicentennial-themed wedding on a 95 degree August day. Kathy describes him as “breathlessly handsome, interesting, charismatic, always had a cool car, cared about style, and loved concerts – there was no man as cool as he was ever in existence.” The partnership between Bob and Kathy serves as an example of love to all who knew them, especially their children, Korin Sharp, Kristin Sharp, and Kerry Haynes. The keystones of their relationship were providing each other with full acceptance, constant forgiveness, and continuous compromise, giving each other space and time, and demonstrating total dedication to their family.

Bob was predeceased by his mother Geraldine Marie Arbaugh, a nurse; his father Glenn Mack Sharp, a Ford engineer and WWII veteran who served on a Navy ship during the attack on Pearl Harbor; his sister Margaret Marie Longshore, a nurse; his beloved infant son, Matthew Sharp; and countless friends and loved ones. He is survived by his beautiful family: his wife Kathryn Sharp; their dog Parker; his daughter Korin Sharp, her husband Neil Hunt, and their children, grandson Emory Sharp and granddaughter Amara Mirielle; his daughter Kristin Sharp; his daughter Kerry Haynes, her husband Drake, and their child, grandson Harold Alexander. He is also survived by cousins, nieces, nephews, and other loved ones and friends.

Bob will be remembered as a brilliant and interesting man, well-read and knowledgeable about a vast number of topics, a history enthusiast (especially World War II and the Civil War), a handyman who loved fixing up his house, a vacation lover (especially waterfront rentals – he loved planning trips as much as taking them, and he always found the best chocolate shop in town), a Detroit sports fan, and a cool car aficionado. He loved music (from Kathy’s church hymns to Fleetwood Mac to Tool, sometimes loud enough to rattle the knick knacks off the shelf), all animals (especially dogs, but also fish, birds and squirrels), gardening (especially growing vegetables, hydrangeas, clematis vines, and his favorite trees), playing golf, all holidays (especially gift holidays that allowed him to shop for his kids and grandkids), keeping his lawn and yard beautiful, collecting historical coins, building complicated Lego sets (even after he lost dexterity in his primary hand, using tools to cleverly work around it), and cooking (especially perfecting his recipe for barbecue chicken and kidney bean salad, and attempting any recipe that would catch his eye, from black forest cake to chicken cacciatore, no matter how complicated). He had compassion for strangers and cared about the greater good and human rights for all people. Most of all, he was a loving, proud and devoted husband, dad, and grandpa, and his family will miss him forever.

His family will celebrate his life on October 22, 2024 at Martenson’s Funeral Home, 3200 West Road, Trenton, Michigan. Private family viewing will be 11:30 a.m - 12:00 p.m., and public visitation will be 12:00 - 7:00 p.m. with a service at 6:00 p.m. He will be laid to rest at Our Lady of Hope Cemetery in Brownstown, Michigan at a private interment with immediate family