Where Are They Now?

Bob Slavik kept his attendance record perfect at the Class of ’63 reunion in 2003, in keeping with what he established the five previous get-togethers we’ve held since graduation.

He wasn’t there.

It’s true, our student council president, sophomore class president, football and baseball captain and the boy voted most athletic in the senior class has never been to one of our reunions.

The obvious question to one of our student leaders, why not?

“Timing,” Bob wrote in an E-mail from his home in Maineville, Ohio, a distant suburb of Cincinnati. “We made it to one of Toni’s only. We have just not been in the area when they were going on, and there were too many family vacations going on.”

Toni is wife Toni Christina, who graduated from Roosevelt in 1965 and was president of her student council too. As Bob explained, “We have been lifelong partners from Sanford Junior High on.” They were married in 1967 and have three kids, twins Barb and Christine, age 37, and Alan, 33. Plus three grandchildren, Joey, 16, Bobby, 13, Christie and husband Todd’s boys, and Fiona, 2, Barb and husband Dave’s daughter.

After high school, Bob attended Augsburg College, majoring in economics, and played football and baseball. He was inducted into the Augsburg Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992. He captained the Auggies baseball team two years. He had to take a step back from football his last season because of recurring concussions, yet still did the placekicking and coached offensive backs that year.

His dad “Dutch” worked for Hormel Foods, and Bob started with the company part time in high school and continued through college. He ended up being employed by the maker of Spam and Little Sizzler pork sausages for 38 years in Nebraska, Kansas, Texas, Georgia and Ohio. He was at the headquarters in Austin, Minn., twice, the last time for 12 years, and retired in 2000 as VP of sales.

Having been in Ohio with Hormel previously, Bob and Toni returned there. He said, “We had our grandchildren here in Cincinnati. So I retired, but was not done. I’ve done a variety of things since, including the formation of a smaller in the food industry, GFI.”

However, he added, “I’ve been limited the past year as a result of a major neck surgery, my third. Actually, the homecoming game when I got my bell rung was probably when the neck thing started.” That would have been the game in which the Teddies tried to “Pickle the Pats” and came up short, losing to Henry 14-7.

Getting drilled on the football field notwithstanding, Bob spoke fondly of his memories from Roosevelt, including, “The variety of activities from choir to athletics. Sports, Toni and some part-time work did take up most of my time. Also, the active student council we had, at least active for the ‘60s.”

So, after all these years, will we finally see Bob at the 45-year reunion of the Class of ’63?

“We will see how our summer schedule pans out,” Bob replied. “If we are back in that area or close to it, we would love to come and see what 45 years has done to us all. Don’t be surprised—either way!”