Robert Lester Farmer

Robert Lester Farmer was born June 3, 1922 in Seattle, Washington.

He graduated from Ballard High School in 1940 and then attended the University of Washington. He was a member of Chi Psi Fraternity and graduated in 1948 with a degree in Aeronautical Engineering.

Before graduating from the University of Washington, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and spent four years flying P-51 Mustangs in World War II. He was based in Italy and flew 30 bomber escort missions over Germany. After the war he married Mary Alexandra Balmert from Hackensack, New Jersey.

He worked for Curtiss Wright in Maywood, New Jersey, and also spent 15 months in Florida working for Curtiss Wright on the Navajo Missile project. In 1958, Robert moved his family back to Mercer Island to work for Boeing. After this move, Robert retired as an Air Force Major from the National Guard, having served in New Jersey, Florida and Washington. At Boeing, in affiliation with NASA, Robert worked for 30+ years on such projects as: Lunar Orbiter, IUS, and Voyager (which just left our solar system), among many other projects.

He is survived by his wife, Mary Farmer of Mercer Island, WA, his daughter, Maryann Bayless of Dana Point, CA, his son, Richard Farmer of San Diego, CA, his granddaughter, Marissa Wennerberg of Mission Viejo, CA, his grandsons, Kyle and Ryan Farmer, and his great-grandsons, Gabriel and Dylan Wennerberg.

Services will be held on Monday, November 25th at St. Monica Catholic Church on Mercer Island at 1:00 p.m. Interment with military honors will be at Tahoma National Cemetery 18600 S.E. 240th St. Kent, WA 98042 on Tuesday, November 26th at 11:15 a.m.

Remembrances may be shared at www.sunsethillsfuneralhome.com