Robert L. Mogren Sr. (Bob) passed away peacefully in his sleep on June 2, 2023 at the age of 81 in Overland Park, Kansas.
Bob grew up in Minot, Minnesota and Seattle, Washington. His parents divorced shortly after he was born, and he was raised by his mom, Lida and other family members. He grew up impoverished, and that inspired his ambitious, alpha personality. He joined the U.S. Navy at age 17 and was proud to be the youngest E-5 in the Service. He served from 1959 to 1961.
After the Service, Bob lived in Seattle and worked for Boeing. There he met his wife, Suzanne and they had their first son, Robbie. Several years later his career moved them from Seattle to Kansas City, which he embraced as his forever home. He loved the Royals, the Chiefs, the American Royal, Gates BBQ and all things Kansas City. After moving to Kansas City, Bob and Suzanne had two additional sons, David and James.
For 30 years, Bob worked in the life insurance business, starting with Manufactures Life and the Strauss, Fuchs Organization (SFO) in Seattle. In Kansas City, he spent 18 years at Jackson National Life. He retired at age 55.
Bob truly enjoyed people. He was part of several trade groupsin his industry and served on numerous charitable boards. He usually found himself in leadership positions and was the face of most of these organizations. Bob was most passionate about Bishop Miege High School and volunteered for over 20 years.
Bob was a man of integrity, true to his word. He was a faith-filled man, but did not find organized religion until he was baptized into the Catholic Church at age 58. He joined the Knights of Columbus and actively participated in the church community.
Outside of work, Bob went through several phases in his life. The boat phase. The motorcycle phase. The golf phase. The fly-fishing phase. Each of these were short term hobbies, but spending time in his garage, working on his cars gave him lifelong enjoyment. His 1957 Chevy was his prized possession and claimed he would be buried in it someday.
Bob is survived by his wife of 54 years, Suzanne; sons, Robert (wife Christa and children Spencer, Parker, Chandler, Cooper, Trever and Caroline), David, and James (wife Elizabeth and children Tate and two foster sons).
Services for Bob will be held on Friday, June 16th at 9:30am at St. Ann’s Church at 7241 Mission Road in Prairie Village, Kansas. A brunch and visitation will follow, and his ashes will be entombed at Leavenworth National Cemetery at 1:30PM. The Livestream link for the Mass will be: https://stannpv.org/bobmogren
In lieu of flowers, Bob’s favorite charities were:
The Bridge to the Future at Bishop Miege High School or
https://securelb.imodules.com/s/100/bp21/interiorsidebar.aspx?sid=100&gid=1&pgid=2231&cid=5915
The St. Ann’s Endowment Fund.
https://stannpv.org/tribute-gifts
Assistance by Funeral Advocates, LLC
I am sorry I didn’t take time to go
vist, family reunions in Minnesota were always more fun when Bob was there! Yes I drove his Corvette to fast, that was Fun! Don’t put off what you what to do.
Dear family, I new Bob while working at Jackson National Life. As A new Regional manager. He was always there when I needed advise. He could be trusted with anything. My heart goes out to you the family of a great and admirable man. I wish the world had more people like Bob! With a heavy heart and deep sorrow, Jack Scardina
Bob will be missed by all of his family of which I am one. See you on the other side, Bob❣️
Sorry to lose you, old friend.
I am praying for Bob’s family. As the youngest half sister, I tried to keep in touch through the years. We enjoyed visiting now and then, and enjoyed his and Suzanne’s visits to Minnesota as well. He will be missed.
Debra (Mogren) Rechlicz
Bob was always interested in the activities of people he knew and cared about including me and my family. He welcomed us into his home for many holidays and ballgames over three Kansas military assignments. My children grew up on Mogren Family Christmas dinners. After my husband retired from the Army Bob introduced him to car shows in the region. I will always be grateful for how good he was to us. I’ll miss him, his stories and his great cooking. My love and prayers to Suzanne and all the family. Bye Bob.
Bob Mogren was one of my closest friends for well over 40 years. When I first met him, he was the Regional Manager for Jackson National Life over 7 states in the midwest. As we got better acquainted we started doing things together outside of business. We went to car shows, concerts, and auto races, including the Indy 500 several times.
We became business partners and owned numerous things together, including land, an office building, a John Deere Dealership, and various vehicles. While we didn’t always agree, there was never a cross word spoken between us.
Bob loved his wife, his family, his friends, his church, Bishop Miege High School, various charities, the KC Chiefs, the Royals, and Jasper’s Restaurant. He was a man of his word. When Bob told you he would do something, that is what he did. He was like a brother to me.