Robert (Bob) Wahlstrom

Robert (Bob) Winston Wahlstrom was born in McAlester, Oklahoma August 25, 1944. The firstborn son of Winston A. and Billie L. Wahlstrom, Bob grew up with his five siblings Bud, Jim, Reed, Robin, and Tina. A man fiercely devoted to his family, Bob is survived by his mother, Billie, his wife of 55 years, Ileen, his sons David and Derek, their wives Chanon and Jeanette, and his amazing grandkids: Brooklyn, Aubrey, Shaun, Jacob, and Alyssa. Completing his undergraduate work at Grand Canyon College, Bob went on to earn a master’s in business administration from the University of Phoenix and completed further graduate studies at the School of Banking at the University of Delaware. Bob began his career at Valley National Bank in 1966 as a bookkeeper and teller. Over the course of his tenure at Valley National Bank he was honored with several promotions eventually becoming the Executive Vice President and Chief of Human Resources and assumed all Human Resource Operations west of the Mississippi with the merger to Bank One. His overwhelming success with the bank landed him as the Human Resources Director for all Bank One operations east of the Mississippi. Bob was avidly involved in his community for many years in many different facets. He served on the Board of Trustees for Grand Canyon University, the Arizona Affordable Health Care Committee, and the Board of Barrow’s Neurological Foundation. Bob was active in his church as a deacon and Sunday School teacher for over 25 years. Bob served in the charitable arm of the bank as the President of the Valley National Bank Foundation and was a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce subcommittee on Health in Washington DC for several years. Throughout his life Bob was an avid outdoorsman. He went hunting, fishing, and golfing as often as possible, and he traveled extensively. His hard work ethic and dogged determination characterized his life that was also lived with extravagant generosity. Although the accomplishments in his lifetime are many, Bob loved his wife, sons, and grandkids above all the accolades and triumphs. He rarely missed a sporting event for his sons and kept up with all the grandkids activities as much as possible. In these ways, Bob demonstrated the great love he had for his family. Services will be held at Grand Community Baptist Church in Surprise, AZ, on Friday, May 6 at 11:00am with the viewing starting at 10:00am. Private burial will be in Payson.