Robert S. Harper
June 5, 1947 – February 20, 2023
Robert “Bob” Harper was a proud union member. The son of a PG&E lineman, Bob was a Lead Cable Splicer/Lineman. He started with IBEW 1245 in California, then moved to Hawaii, Oregon, and on to Arkansas where he resided most recently. During his time at Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), he was a shop steward. He worked outside line, from New York to California, and even in Puerto Rico, and referred to himself as an “I’ve been everywhere lineman.” People thought Bob worked for the union. He was always telling young men and women to go down to the union hall, get a good job, and do it right. He knew you had to be able to work safe, and that meant going through the union hall.
Bob is survived by his loving wife, Mona, who enjoyed traveling alongside him whenever possible. Mona recalled Bob’s dedication for the union and his work, “He reminded me of a retired fire horse hearing the alarm bells when a storm came, wishing he was on that storm break getting the power back on.” In Mona’s words, “Linemen are heroes, he was mine.”