Sergeant Major Robert J. "Bob" Powell, USMC, Retired, passed away in Atlanta, Georgia, on September 30, 2021. Bob was a long-time resident of the Jacksonville/Onslow County/Camp LeJeune community until his beloved wife Mary passed away in the summer of 2012.

In August 2012, Bob moved in with his son Jay Powell and his wife Angela where they lived on the South Shore of the greater Boston metro area. From there in 2014, Bob moved with them to Ponte Vedra, Florida where he enjoyed the sunshine. In the fall of 2019, he moved with them to the northwestern mountain region of Georgia where he lived with them until his passing in Blairsville, Georgia. He was 95 years old.

Bob was born on March 27, 1926, in Stratford, N.J., a small rural town, to Charles and Elsie (Ward) Powell, where he was the middle of five sons. Bob followed in his family's business of serving his country when he joined the US Marine Corps at the age of 17. Bob's father Charles and his four other brothers all served in the Armed Services and until this day his older brother Charles who was in the "Bataan Death March" remains have yet to be located. Bob was preceded in death by his beloved wife Mary, his parents, and his brothers Charles, Allen, Howard, and Richard.

Bob met Mary Schmidt after WWII when he was stationed at the Philadelphia Navy Yard where Mary volunteered as a USO hostess. They married on October 19, 1946 and remained the loves of each other's lives for the next 65 years. Bob continued to wear his wedding band until his passing. During the last years of Mary's life, Bob was her primary caregiver for 10 years.

Bob served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Having learned morse code in the Boy Scouts the Marine Corps saw an aspiring communicator, radio operator, and forward observer. Bob was also involved in classified electronic espionage, first while stationed in Germany intercepting communication between Russia, eastern Germany, and Poland. He continued this communications surveillance intelligence through most of his Marine Corps' career.

Bob received his high school diploma in the mail as the Marines were preparing to fight the Japanese on the island of Guam and onward from there to fight at Iwo Jima where he was severely wounded in action and saw the Stars and Stripes raised on Mount Suribachi. He was evacuated to Saipan and then San Francisco for surgeries and carried shrapnel in his back that was not ever removed due to complications from where it was located. One of the surgeons told him that down the road his injuries would "give him trouble" and they did.

During Bob's service in the Marine Corps, he was awarded numerous distinguished medals and commendations throughout his military career. He was extremely proud of his time in the US Marine Corps. The complications of his war wounds led to his retirement in 1969.

After he retired from the Marine Corps and then from his second career as a Facilities Manager at Coastal Carolina Community College Bob continued to serve by volunteering at the Camp LeJeune Naval Hospital where he filled prescriptions. He enjoyed the camaraderie of his Marine brothers as a member of the Marine Corps League, Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH), Marine Corps Devil Dog, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Disabled Veterans (DAV), and the Marine Corps Cryptologic Association (MCCA). He was especially proud of his work in helping to establish a Jacksonville memorial to the Marines killed in the Beirut barracks bombing of 1983. During his lifetime as a resident of Jacksonville, he was presented with commendations from the City of Jacksonville as well as the Marine Corps League, MOPH, and other organizations he gave his time to. Bob was also an active member of the Knights of Columbus and an usher at the Infant of Prague.

Bob and Mary lived from the late Fifties in Jacksonville since he was often stationed at Camp Lejeune and remained the home for the family when he was deployed. He loved his family, UNC Tar Heels basketball, spy novels, and the dogs who loved him right back. He was a long-suffering fan of the Redskins football team and the Phillies, of whom he would always say, "watch those Phillies - next year!"

Bob is survived by his son Jay and his wife Angela Powell of Blairsville, GA and their daughter Lauren and her husband Jeff Goff of Boston, MA, and daughter Alison Powell of Charleston, SC; Bob's daughter Sharon and her husband William Brown of Port Charlotte, FL; as well as Gary and his wife Nancy and their daughter Elizabeth of Portland, Or, and his loyal four-legged companion Tessa.

Bob will be remembered as a kind, generous, tough, stoic but humorous guy with a warm heart, and kind soul, a devoted husband, and a loving father and grandfather or "Papa," as his granddaughters called him.

His viewing will take place at Jones Funeral Home on Monday, November 8th from 6 PM – 8 PM. His memorial mass will take place on Tuesday, November 9th at 10:00 a.m. at Infant of Prague Catholic Church, followed by a full military honors ceremony at the Onslow County/Jacksonville Veterans Cemetery at 12 PM.

Please make any donations in the memory of Sergeant Major Robert J. "Bob" Powell, USMC, Retired to: Carolina Museum of the Marine, a 501C not-for-profit corporation. Federal Tax Identification Number is 56-2186718.    Website for ways to donate https://www.museumofthemarine.org/ways-to-donate/ and Phone number is (910) 937-0033.