Robert M. Stephenson was born in Athens, Georgia, on September 20, 1947. He died August 5, 2026, at the age of 78, with his family at his side.

His young parents moved the family to Valdosta, Georgia, where they raised their children. Bob grew up with his brothers, Mell (now retired Navy, Maple Valley, Washington) and Chip Stephenson (also retired Navy, Sand Point, ID). Bob graduated Valdosta High School in 1965, attended college in Valdosta for one year, and then joined the Navy in 1967. Leaving the Southeast behind for various parts of the world, he found the real love of his life in the Pacific Northwest. He married Linda (Cheetham) in July 1970, and in 1971 brought her to Winter Park, Florida, out of the cold and rainy weather. He left the Navy in 1971, saying he "did not want to live a life of moving around all the time." In Winter Park, he and a partner opened Torque East, a speed shop specializing in quarter-mile drag racing. Bob attended Rollins College while running the business.

Upon closing the business and graduating from Rollins magna cum laude with a degree in Business Administration and a minor in Marketing, he was hired by Chevrolet Motor Division in Jacksonville, Florida. From there, Bob and Linda moved 17 times while he was employed by GM. He retired from GM in 2002 and became the marketing manager, graphic artist, and website designer for Linda's horse breeding business. That kept him busy for the next 18 years, as he grew that single website into dozens of websites he built and managed for clients around the world.

He finally retired for good upon moving to Columbia, Tennessee, in 2020 to be closer to his son and granddaughter.

Bob is survived by his wife of 56 years, Linda; his son, Christopher Stephenson; and two grandchildren, Evan Hall of Cantonment, Florida, and Grace Stephenson of Franklin, Tennessee. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Dana Hall, in 2019.

Williams Funeral Home is honored to serve the Stephenson family. Condolences may be shared at www.williamsfh.com