Corpus Christi Caller Times

Robert Michael Tabone, 52, of Rockport, Texas, unexpectedly passed away Sunday, March 2, 2003. He was born on April 10, 1950, in Astoria, New York, to Anthony Tabone and the late Anne Tabone. He graduated from New York Maritime College in 1972 and worked for Peter Kiewit Sons,for 26 years holding various senior management positions responsible for major multimillion dollar projects. He retired from Kiewit in 1997.

After retiring, he and Helen, his wife of 30 years, devoted their time to promoting and participating in Worldwide Marriage Encounter, where they held a number of leadership positions culminating in representing the United States at National and worldwide events. He was a member of Sacred Heart Parish in Rockport, and a member of the Knights of Columbus.

He is survived by his wife Helen and four children, Robert, Jean, Michael, and Kathryn; his father, Anthony, and his three brothers and three sisters.

Visitation will be held at 1:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 5, 2003 at Maxwell P. Dunne Funeral Home. A Rosary will be recited that same evening at 8:00 p.m. at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, Baldwin Ave. at 18 Street. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, March 6, 2003, at St. Thomas More Catholic Church.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that a donation may be mailed to Worldwide Marriage Encounter to: Worldwide Marriage Encounter, 2210 East Highland Ave., #106, San Bernardino, California 92404

In Loving Memory of Bob Tabone
By John & Ann Arnold

Our dearest Huli, Bobby, Jean, Michael and Katie, To all of Bob’s family, his co-workers, and friends; And to you our beloved Marriage Encounter family:

We could not let Bob pass from our presence without at least trying to put into words what is in our hearts.

Today we gather to celebrate the life of a man who gave his ALL.

God’s plan for Bob has been fulfilled!

And we know that just as God said of Jesus, He also says of Bob.

THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, BOB, IN WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED.

ANN

These past few days we have received many calls and messages and the one thing we have heard over and over is “Bob and Huli”….  It’s as if it is almost impossible to say Bob or to say Huli.  

Bob and Huli are one.  One in mind, one in body, One in spirit

And most especially one in Love and one in Christ!

Bob and Huli are our models of “The Love of God”

Their love is real.  It is powerful.  And it is efficacious!  It affects us all.

In so many ways it has touched us and changed us.

We all know, without a doubt, what great love Bob has for you Huli. 

He made so many decisions to love.  One of the greatest being to retire from a business he loved, in order to be more for you.

You see, Bob heard a call from God on his Marriage Encounter weekend and he answered that call with a profound “yes”.

God made known to Bob that the greatest thing that he could do with his life was to love.  First of all to love you, Huli and to love you Bobby, Jean, Michael, and Katie.

But God also called Bob to love others.  To take the love he had and allows it to grow and to give it to others.

Jesus said to His disciples: “This is my commandment: love one another as I have love you.  There is no greater love than this:  to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

And all of us are so blessed to have been Bob’s friends.

JOHN

Many times this calls for great sacrifices to be made. 

There may have been times when you didn’t fully understand this.  And even now you may have feelings of regret (or even anger) that you didn’t get more of your Dad’s time.

But let me assure you today that all that your Dad did was because he loved you so very much.  He loved you so deeply that he felt compelled to do and to give all he could in order to make this world a better place for you to grow up in and learn from. 

Bob had gifts; many, many gifts.  He had love, honor, respect and great passion for his Huli. They were like two kids in a candy store. 

He delighted in you, Huli.

It didn’t matter where you went or what task was at hand, it was all a great adventure with you by his side.

Bob had wisdom.  He had knowledge and skills, but he had the wisdom to know when and how to use them.

ANN

Bob had integrity.  He loved sincerely.  He spoke the truth and with great passion. 

You children may have experienced this as some pretty high expectations and pretty tough rules.  But you knew it came from his love for you.

But he led us all with integrity.

He didn’t ask anything of anyone that he didn’t live himself.

I have always said, Bob could disagree with you and confront you and set you straight, and when he was finished you felt as if you had received the greatest affirmation of you life.

Bob lived his values with conviction.  He was dedicated as a husband, as a father, as a friend and most especially as a servant of God.

We could ask “Why God, why Bob?  Why at the age of 52 with so much to give, why take him from us?

Perhaps in our humanness we must ask these questions and feel this anguish and grief.  You see we MUST pass through doubt and despair in order to fully experience faith and hope.

Joy and sorrow are sisters; they live in the same house.

In the midst of all of the sorrow we feel, there is also room for joy.

Life consists of both joys and sorrow; death and resurrection.

And as believers in Christ, we know that life does not end with death.

You see, Bob didn’t live by what he wanted.  He lived by what God wanted of him.

Was his life a life of all joys?  No.

But Bob accepted his crosses.  Not only did he accept them, he embraced them.  He learned and grew from his difficult times.

As precious as we know life is, especially Bob’s life

We must also know that his eternal life is even more precious.

And that it will bring even greater things.

JOHN

And so today we bow down in our grief.  But we also look upward and see the glory of God.

We see Bob in all his Glory!  We hear him saying to us

“I shall not die, but live, and recount the deeds of the Lord”.

Bob is with us, just as Christ is with us.

And the way that we can keep him alive and with us is to take all that Bob gave to us and live it in our own personal lives.

ANN

We don’t think it is a coincidence that today is the beginning of lent.

All of us are being called to a time of personal renewal.

And as we hold Bob and you, Huli, in our hearts, let us search our hearts and grow.

Let us continue our journey.  Let us continue to try our very best to grow into the image of God that we are called to be.

Let us be God’s love and witnesses of gospel joy.

This, we sincerely believe, is the way that we can best Honor our Beloved Bob.

From Fr. Mark Willenbring

Dear W.W.M.E. Family,

Yesterday, March 6th, we said our "good bye" to Bob Tabone at St. Thomas More Church in Corpus Christi, Texas. The funeral liturgy was a beautiful tribute to a most wonderful man. Fr. Victor Scocco, a very close friend and Marriage Encounter priest, presided at the Mass, concelebrated by Bishop Edmund Carmody, Bishop of Corpus Christi, and eighteen priests. All of Bob and Huli's living parents, their four children, and their siblings were present, along with hundreds of friends, Marriage Encounter leaders, including Lee and Jan Kremer, the International Coordinating Couple, and all of the national pillar team couples. In his homily Fr. Victor paid tribute to Bob and stressed the power of love over death.

Having worked closely with Bob and Huli over the past two years in national leadership, spending about forty weekends a year with them, I concur with all the wonderful comments made about Bob. I consider having worked with Bob and Huli as one of the greatest blessings of my priesthood. Bob was a man of great humility and sterling character,. He had a strong faith in God, was an outstanding husband, father and friend. He had a big heart that overflowed with love and compassion for everyone, rich or poor. He was extremely intelligent and dedicated to the Marriage Encounter movement. In recent months he spoke passionately about the mission of W.W.M.E. of renewing the world and the Church through the renewal of the sacraments of Matrimony and Holy Orders. We in W.W.M.E. have been privileged to have such a giant as our national leader. I will never forget the lessons he taught me by word and example. Our prayers are with Huli and their family. May Bob's soul rest in peace.

With much love and gratitude to God,
Fr. Mark Willenbring