Robert R. Pipher

Robert "Bob" R. Pipher, of the Black Hat, Creator and Appreciator of Beautiful Things, left this world on March 21, 2017. He is survived by his partner Christine Bonelli of Sandyston, NJ; his children Derek and Jessica Pipher of New Orleans, Louisiana, and Lyle Pipher of Boulder, Colorado; and a grandson, Thomas Pipher of San Antonio, Texas. He was predeceased by his parents, Russ and Ruth Pipher, and his brother Roy Pipher, of Stroudsburg, PA.  Bob grew up in Stroudsburg, graduated from Stroudsburg High School in 1960, and spent the majority of his adult life living, raising his family, and running his cabinetry business in Bartonsville, PA. In 2011, he left PA to live in Sandyston, NJ, with Christine, away from the exploding hustle and bustle the Poconos had become.  Many in the Poconos and surrounding areas have furniture built or installed by Bob. He built beautiful cabinetry and furniture, generally in the Mission style, that will last many lifetimes. Look under those sturdy Mission style pieces; it might be one of his. As he wound down his cabinet and furniture making career, he made photography more than a hobby. You might catch his photographs in someone's hall someday.  in August of 2014, his photo of a mountain lion took Honorable mention at the NJ State Fair/Sussex County Farm & Horse Show.  He also took up quilting as a hobby. He had an eye for beautiful color and design that resulted in two of his quilts winning First and Second place at the NJ State Fair/Sussex County Farm & Horse Show in August of 2016.  Bob traveled throughout the world both through his military time and recreational travel later in life. He took the opportunity to explore Germany and the surrounding countries while he was stationed there between 1962 and 1964. His recreational travels took him all over, primarily to take beautiful photographs of wildlife and nature. He was able to go to Churchill, Manitoba, Canada to photograph the polar bears; plane-only wilderness of Alaska and western Canada to photograph bear catching salmon in the spring; in 2010, Bob traveled to Longyearbyen, a small coal-mining town on Spitsbergen Island, in Norway's Svalbard archipelago to photograph the glaciers; and throughout Southwest USA including a photo shoot in the Fire Sands of Arizona to photograph the wave rocks. This is all in addition to the significant amount of wildlife, covered bridge, and old building photography he took throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and New England.  A memorial service will be held on March 25, 2017 at the Bensing-Thomas Funeral Home in Stroudsburg, PA, at 10:00 a.m.  He will be interred at Bevans Cemetary, Sandyston, NJ.  In lieu of flowers, please send donations to The National Kidney Foundation at www.kidney.org.