Robert Lee Kuhn 1948 - 2023

Robert Lee Kuhn, of Corvallis, Oregon, passed away July 30, 2023, at Regency Park Place, where he resided and received thoughtful, loving care from the staff for the past five years. In his final days, he was also kindly tended to by Lumina Hospice.

Bob, as he was known to his many friends, was the only child of Lee W. Kuhn and VaDare (Hackney) Kuhn. Born July 31, 1948, in Corvallis, he grew up in their family home situated on a sprawling farm of apple trees, blackberry bushes and wild deer. Bob graduated from Oregon State University (OSU) in June of 1970 with a degree in Speech Communication, and married the love of his life, fellow OSU graduate, Betty Jean Yoneyama, two months later. The couple settled in McMinnville, Oregon, where they raised their family.

Bob worked for several years in print, broadcast, and photojournalism, reporting on everything from elections to sporting events and developing his passion for capturing life’s pivotal moments in words and pictures. He then spent nearly 30 years working for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), both at headquarters and the Salem Field Office, before retiring in 2004 and moving back to his childhood home.

Bob was a hobby enthusiast with a variety of lifelong interests he embraced with gusto. He was an accomplished photographer with a knack for snapping candids of family and friends and developing his own prints in the darkroom. He built a successful wedding photography business over the years, and especially enjoyed lovingly documenting the weddings of his two children. He relished being a Ham radio operator (KU7N), participating in Corvallis High School’s Ham radio club, getting his first license in the late ’70s, and serving as a founding member of the McMinnville Amateur Radio Club in 1981. He was also an avid model railroad fan and collector and played trumpet in the OSU Alumni Band and the One More Time Around Again Marching Band, performing at such events as the Portland Rose Festival Grand Floral Parade.

Bob was gregarious and friendly, always ready with an easy smile or a humorous toast. He loved sharing his passions and building community around his interests, resulting in a large and varied circle of friends. He encouraged that same enthusiasm in his children: playing music with them, taking them to comic book conventions on the weekends, and letting them loose for hours  in used bookstores.

Bob was preceded in death by his wife, Betty, who passed away in 1999. He is survived by his daughter, Sarah Kuhn of Los Angeles (and husband Jeffrey Chen); his son, Steven Kuhn of Corvallis (and wife Marjorie Coffey); and his granddaughter, Veronica.

A Celebration of Life will be held  at 10 a.m. Friday, August 18, at McHenry Funeral Home, 206 N.W. Fifth St. in Corvallis, Oregon. Donations in honor of Bob may be made to the Lee Wallace Kuhn Memorial Scholarship through the Oregon State University Foundation.