Robert N. Cleverdon ’44 died on August 26, 2024, in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
(The following was provided by Dignity Memorial in 2024:)
Robert N. Cleverdon ’44
Robert Newton Cleverdon, of Ipswich, MA, formerly of Wellesley, passed in peace on August 26, 2024, at the age of 102 and nine months. He was born in Boston, MA, on November 21, 1921, to Herbert S. and Francis Cleverdon (Sheldon). He was known by many names; Steve (by his father), Bob, Bobbie, Clev, Clevie, Newt, Jr, Pop, Grampy, Great-Grand Pop, and more we may not be aware of, but to us he was Dad.
His education started at Newton Elementary and Junior High Schools and then went on to high school at The Rivers School in Brookline, which he loved and enjoyed playing baseball, hockey and football, (jersey #0!). After the war he graduated with several degrees, a business administration certificate from the Babson Institute, a structural design certificate from Franklin Technical Institute and a Bachelor of Technology at the Wentworth Institute of Technology. These served him well when working for his dad at Cleverdon, Varney & Pike Consulting Engineering, and then, eventually, when he took over the business. In his retirement he loved working for Campbell Supplies in Wellesley, driving all around greater Boston delivering parts (it was the navigator in him!).
Dad was a veteran of WWII, serving in the Army Air Corps as a first lieutenant in the 392nd Bomber Group, in the 8th Air Force, 2nd Air Division “Flying Crusaders,” 14th Combat Wing, as a lead navigator. He flew thirty successful missions and earned the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with four Oak Clusters, and was part of the European Theater of Operation (for Northern France, Normandy, Rhineland, Ardennes and Central Europe). Later in life at the age of 98, on Bastille Day, he received the French Legion Medal of Honor from the French consulate in Cambridge, MA for flying three missions over France.
He was passionate about walking his Newfoundland dogs (of which there were many over the years), bagpipe music which he fell in love with in Edinburgh, Scotland, during a WWII visit (also played live at his 99th & 100th birthdays), and a steady diet of peanut & PB M&M’s eaten daily later in life (the secret to his longevity), along with an occasional Scotch whisky (a taste he acquired after the war). He skied all over New England, as well as in Colorado and Utah into his 80s. He was an avid tennis player with his wife, Margery, and played with several men’s groups, also into his 80s. He loved sailing for fun and racing his Sunfish in lakes Sebago and Winnipesaukee with friends, and earlier in life playing squash with his nephew. His favorite sports teams were the Boston Red Sox and Bruins (which he followed for so many years that there were too many names & teams to remember). He enjoyed traveling with family and friends over his years with his highlights being Montreal and Williamsburg (with wife, Margery), Bermuda (with close friends), the Arizona celebration of his 90th birthday (family trip to Grand Canyon-Hoover Dam-Route 66-Sedona), Germany-Belgium-Netherlands (watching his grandchildren play soccer with “People-to-People”), Colorado (visiting the Air Force Academy), and a Boston duck boat ride for his 95th birthday. He was also fortunate to see all ten of his grandchildren get married in his lifetime and to meet his nine great-grandchildren.
He is preceded in death by his beloved wife of fifty-nine years, Margery Cleverdon (Guimaraes), his sister, Elizabeth “Betty” Baird (Cleverdon), and her husband, Stuart, and their daughter (his only niece), Patricia Baird.
Robert is survived by his loving children; daughter Linda Gardner (Cleverdon) and husband Tom of Warren, VT (their family; grandson Scott and his wife, Rachel, great-granddaughter Mila; grandson Jeff and his wife, Mosie; granddaughter Jen Kearns (Gardner) and her husband, Mike, great-granddaughter Hailey); son Robert N. Cleverdon of Ellington, CT (his family; grandson Mark and his wife, Jen, great-grandchildren Kayla and Jackson; grandson Ryan and his wife, Sarah, great-granddaughter Delaney; grandson Tyler and his wife, Audrey); son Mark A. Cleverdon and wife, Kim of Mendon, MA (their family; granddaughter Kristina Landers (Cleverdon) and her husband, Hal, great-granddaughters Hadley and Kennedy; granddaughter Katlyn LoPresti (Cleverdon) and her husband, Kyle, great-grandsons Chase and Travis); and his daughter Lisa Cleverdon of Ipswich, MA (her family; grandson Kyle Clark and his wife, Kaleigh Mangiarelli; granddaughter Brittany Beck (Clark) and her husband, James). He is also survived by his only nephew, Freddy Baird of Midlothian, VA, and his partner, Diane.
He believed in God and was a member of the Village Church of Wellesley for 60 yrs and served as an usher and in other positions. When he moved to Ipswich, he attended the First Congregational Church of Essex with his daughter Lisa. Both churches loved him well and he was blessed by their kindness at church and at home when he needed assistance. He was in hospice for two years and received their best home care before he spent his last ten days of his life at the Kaplan Hospice House in Danvers, receiving the best end of life care, love, and peace.
A WWII documentary, “The Green Box: At the Heart of the War” by his Ipswich neighbor and friend Jim Kurtz, was based on his dad’s WWII experiences from his book The Green Box. Dad was proud to have supported the film and shared his experiences as a navigator of a B24 with author Jim Kurtz whose dad (featured in the film) was a B24 co-pilot. The film will be broadcast on PBS.