Husband, father, grandfather, brother, teacher and friend

On February 5th, at the age of 81, “Robert Speakman left this world for a joyous reunion with his wife,” his family shared. “He spent his life faithfully serving the Lord, his family, and the community.” 

Robert influenced many young people’s lives as an industrial arts teacher and leader of extracurricular clubs, which included a wilderness hiking and rock climbing club and later a bicycling club.  

He was born in August, 1939 in Bend, Oregon to Robert Dean Speakman and Lucy Speakman (Denman) and grew up in Southern California. He graduated from Garden Grove High School in 1957, attended Biola University, finished his undergraduate studies at Abilene Christian College, and received a master’s degree at Azusa Pacific University.  

In December of 1961, he was married to Diana Carolyn Woolley at the United Presbyterian Church in Santa Ana, California. 

In 1962, he joined the U.S. Air Force and was stationed at Dyess Air Force Base just outside Abilene, Texas, where their first two sons were born.  In 1969, the family moved back to California, where he was hired to teach at Simons Junior High School in Pomona. Soon after that a third son was born. 

He was a member of the Sierra Club in its early years, and his enthusiasm for the outdoors was contagious. He loved rock climbing, backpacking, and mountain biking. 

He was an active member of several churches over the years: First Baptist Church of Pomona, Grace Brethren in La Verne, and Glenkirk Presbyterian in Glendora. His final church home was Baseline Community Church in Claremont.

He was preceded in death by his mother, father and wife.

He is survived by his sons Dane, Steven and Benjamin and their families, including seven grandchildren, as well as his siblings Linda Elliott, John Denman and Phyllis Jones. 

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, February 13 at Baseline Community Church, 4552 N. Towne Ave., Claremont.