Robert Lincoln Potter, loving husband, father, brother, uncle, grandfather and Renaissance Man extraordinaire, passed away in the arms of his family on April 4, 2018. He was a shade shy of his 96th birthday.
 

Robert was born one of three sets of fraternal boy-girl twins on April 22, 1922 to Grace and James Potter of Glens Falls, New York. His parents were distinguished Vaudevillian performers and his dad a prodigious poet. After the tragic and unexpected death of his father when Robert was just two years old, a benefactor moved the family - including all sets of twins and two single children - to West Los Angeles.
 

For several years, the nine members of the Potter clan crammed into a three-room bungalow on Butler Street. At one point during the depression, Robert “hopped the rails” and took himself on a cross-country odyssey that would have made Daniel Boone proud. He was also a temporary resident of Boy’s Town in Omaha, Nebraska, under the tutelage of Father Edward J. Flanagan. Robert was an avid cyclist, having trained for the 1940 Olympics (cancelled due to WWII). Many years later, he formed his own cycling club, Cyclistas Capistrano.
 

Following a stint at Page Military Academy back in Los Angeles, dad joined the army and served in WWII at the Battle of the Bulge, which proved to be a turning point in the Allies’ war against evil in the European Theatre.
 

Upon completion of honorable service, Robert returned to the states to pursue his passion for the sciences, mathematics and engineering. He also collaborated in raising German Shepherds. In 1954, he and a partner founded Potter/Leff Engineering, which specialized in the design and production of parts for the aerospace industry. He met the love of his life, Gloria, in 1966 while the two worked together at Beta Engineering.
 

When the bottom fell out of the aerospace industry in the late 1960s, Robert redefined himself through his love of nature and horticulture. For nearly five decades, he and his wife owned and operated a thriving arboriculture and landscaping business. During this time, Robert fused his love of engineering and classical music with his knowledge of wood and chemistry to craft orchestra-quality cellos and violins as well as bows for each.
 

Robert is survived by his wife, Gloria Anne, his daughter Diane Yuskin and her husband Perry Yuskin, and his sons, Jim Roberts and his wife, Sharon Roberts, Gregory Potter and his wife, Susan Fierberg, Steve Whisler and John Whisler. His beloved daughter, Barbara Roberts, passed away in 2002. He leaves a legacy of love and service to humanity as demonstrated by the lives lived by those he leaves behind.