Robert Harris Kabrich (1925 - 1994)

Born 12 May 1925 in Christiansburg, Montgomery, Virginia, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Patricia Ann (Lawrence) Kabrich — married 16 Jun 1952 in Falls Church, Virginia, United States

Descendants

Died 22 Oct 1994 at age 69 in Fairfax, Virginia, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Robin Kabrich [send private message]

Bob Kabrich served in the United States Army in World War II
Service started: 13 August 1943
Unit(s): 83rd Infantry Division
Service ended: 7 February 1946

Bob Kabrich was Wounded in Action during World War II.

Corporal Bob Kabrich served in the United States Army in the Korean War
Service started: 1950
Unit(s): Corps of Engineers
Service ended: 1951

This profile is part of the Kabrich Name Study.

Biography

Robert Harris Kabrich (Bob) was born in Christiansburg, Virginia on May 12, 1925. He was the youngest child of Joseph Edward "Ed" Kabrich and Minnie Rose Harris. According to his older sister, Bob was the first one in the family born in a hospital.

Bob was graduated from Christiansburg High School in 1943 and was drafted by the Army to fight in World War II. He first saw combat in 1944 during the Normandy Campaign. Bob served in Company A, 330th Infantry Regiment of the 83rd Infantry Division. He was badly wounded and was awarded both the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. He returned to combat but became ill with hepatitis. He spent some time in the hospital in England, then he was sent to Chicago to finish his recuperation and served the rest of his enlistment as an orderly at the hospital where he had once been a patient. He was honorably discharged from the Army in May 1945.

Bob reenlisted in the Army in 1946. He spent two years in Korea as part of the occupation force there. He advanced in rank to Corporal, returned to the United States, and was again honorably discharged in 1949. Bob then began attending Virginia Tech, but his education was interrupted when the Army recalled him from inactive reserve, and he spent another year in Korea in 1950 during the armed hostilities there.

Bob went back to college using the benefits of the GI Bill. He met Patricia Ann Lawrence (Pat) on a co-ed church retreat that included students from both Virginia Tech and Radford. They fell in love and got married on June 16, 1952. Pat encouraged Bob to continue with his education while she managed their emerging family, and Bob finally graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelor of Art's degree in Sociology in 1955.

In December 1956, Bob became a juvenile probation officer for Fairfax County, Virginia. He remained in that position until his death in 1994. He planned to retire upon his 70th birthday in 1995.

As a probation officer, Bob was a dedicated professional who earned the admiration and respect of his colleagues, and he made a difference in the lives of many troubled teen aged boys, to the relief of their concerned parents.

Bob fell ill with pneumonia in October 1994 when he was 69 years old. Both Bob and Pat thought he should go to the hospital, but his physician assured them that his recovery would be more comfortable if he stayed at home. Despite the physician's predictions, Bob died in his sleep at home on the morning of October 22, 1994. His body was cremated. On May 12, 1995, what would have been his 70th birthday, Corporal Robert Harris Kabrich was entombed with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia.^[1]

Bob was active in his community, coaching girl's softball, attending St. Luke's United Methodist Church, and participating in several square dance clubs. He not only became a master square dancer, he also took up square dance calling as a hobby. He frequently volunteered to call dances at a local rehabilitation facility.

To Bob his most important achievement was taking care of his family, a job he did with unfailing faith and love for both his wife, his two children, and his two grandchildren, whom he and Pat also raised. That love and support also extended to Pat's niece and two nephews, who spent much of their childhood under his roof. Sadly, Bob's three great-grandchildren were born after his untimely death.

Sources

1. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #103904315 (accessed 29 March 2024) Memorial page for Robert Harris Kabrich (12 May 1925-22 Oct 1994), citing Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA (plot: Court 4 Section A Column 10 Niche 3); Maintained by Robin Kabrich (contributor 48097099).

• Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1930. T626, 2,667 rolls.

• Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls.

• Ancestry.com. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

• Commonwealth of Virginia, Bureau of Vital Statistics. Certificate of Birth 22818. Filed May 15, 1925. Personal Collection of Robin Kabrich.

• Commonwealth of Virginia. Certificate of Marriage. June 16, 1952. Personal Collection of Robin Kabrich.

• Department of the Army of the United States of America, War Department, AGO Form 53-55, Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge, Kabrich, Robert H. 7 February 1946, Camp Grant, Illinois. Personal Collection of Robin Kabrich.

• Department of the Army of the United States of America, War Department AGO Form 53, Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge, Kabrich, Robert H. 26 May 1949, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Personal Collection of Robin Kabrich.

• National Archives and Records Administration. U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005. Original data: Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946 [Archival Database]; ARC: 1263923. World War II Army Enlistment Records; Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 64; National Archives at College Park. College Park, Maryland, U.S.A.

• Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957. Microfilm Publication T715, 8892 rolls. Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; National Archives at Washington, D.C.

• Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Social Security Administration.