ROBERT M. DRESSLER
November 10, 1939 - May 3, 2015
Bob died on May 3, 2015 in Vienna while on vacation with his beloved wife Carol. He spent his childhood in Valley Stream, New York, and moved to California for graduate school, fell in love with the sunny weather that allowed him to play tennis year round, and lived here for the rest of his life. He loved learning from an early age. His hard work and intellectual curiosity led to an undergraduate scholarship to the engineering program at RPI, followed by the Hughes Aircraft Fellowship for the doctoral program at Stanford University through which he earned a PhD. He always continued the pursuit of learning as an avid reader and world traveler. He was excited and open-minded, soaking up information about history, architecture, culture, politics, and people, listening patiently and with interest to everyone he encountered. In his long career as an engineer, Bob put his intellect and creativity to work at several companies such as SRI, Systems Control, ESL, and Integrated Systems, working as a leader and a mentor. He was known for inspiring team work, providing sound advice, and maintaining patient focus in all his projects. For the past fifteen years, Bob worked at Polaris Wireless as cofounder and Vice President of Engineering. He was instrumental in building and leading the team that developed the proprietary cellular technology upon which the company is based. He is the co-inventor on the many patents held by the company. While intellectual pursuits were very important to Bob, he was also very athletic. He absolutely loved all sports and sporting events, both as a participant and a fan. He played baseball in high school and college, coached his daughter's softball team, and supported all the athletic pursuits of his children and grandchildren from the sidelines. He was a loyal supporter of Stanford athletics and a diehard Niner fan. His summers were spent on the lake waterskiing and swimming. Aside from his many accomplishments and interests, the most important things to Bob were his family and his personal relationships. He was never afraid of telling us all just how much he loved us. His unconditional love and support were cornerstones of our family. Bob was a very gentle soul. He was extremely involved in the lives of his children and friends. He was a cherished father and grandfather, and a wonderful husband. He was a fantastic mentor and a fierce friend. Always humble, always loyal, always ready to step in with a joke or a solution. We will never forget his smile and his laughter. We love him so much and will remember him in our daily lives by living as he did. He will be dearly missed by all those whose lives he touched and who loved him. Bob was preceded in death by his parents Irving and Sylvia. He is survived by his wife Carol; his children Allison (Andrew), Lindsay (Ben), Jenny, and Adam (Alli); his grandchildren Logan and Beau; his sister Lynne (Bill); and his nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held at Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills on Friday, May 15, 2015 at 1:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in Bob's memory to Stanford University School of Engineering or Athletics, or to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Engineering program.