Obituary of Robert Lee Pate

Robert Lee Pate, 91, died suddenly on March 23 in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, while playing golf overlooking the London Bridge. He was born in Johnson City, Tennessee on Sept 5, 1924 to William and Charlotte Pate. During WWII he served the war effort working in the Manhattan Project at the Oak Ridge site. He married his sweetheart, Martha Jean Mott on August 15, 1946. As a young man, he was called to Christian ministry and attended Johnson Bible College, East Tennessee State University and grad school at University of Pittsburgh. He held resident ministries in Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Kansas. In 1973, after witnessing the extreme poverty found in Central America, he and his wife felt led to work among the poor in the jungles of Belize and Honduras. Following the devastation of Hurricane Fifi, assisted by the International Disaster Emergency Service, Robert and Martha founded Caribbean Medical Evangelism which provided medical care, ministry to the poor in the rural mountains, training young people in basic medical care, homes for abandoned children, funding for local schools, and developed radio programming with stations throughout Central America. After his wife's death in 1979, Bob continued his work, traveling by horseback, truck, and plane throughout the rural areas of Honduras over 24 years of ministry. Following retirement, he returned stateside and worked as a park ranger in the national parks of Washington and Texas, before retiring to Arizona in 1998. He met and married his dear Bette Gerard in 1999. They hiked, kayaked, played golf, and traveled throughout North America and Europe, living in Lake Havasu and Munds Park until her death in 2004. He is survived by his children, Brenda (Edward), Ron (Kathleen), and John (LaRon) as well as 3 grandsons and four great grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at Lietz-Fraze Funeral Home on Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 10 AM. In lieu of flowers, the family request that donations be made in Robert's name to IDES (INTERNATIONAL DISASTER EMERGENCY SERVICE) at https://www.ides.org/donate.html Services were placed in the care of Lietz-Fraze Funeral Home. Thoughts and condolences may be sent to Robert's family at www.lietz-frazefuneralhome.com.