Robert ‘Bob’ H. Batchelor
Longtime veterinarian and environmental advocate was an avid marksman and member of the Gunpowder Valley Conservancy
Dr. Robert “Bob” H. Batchelor, a longtime veterinarian, avid marksman and environmental advocate, died of congestive heart failure Thursday at a hospice in Timonium. He was 91.
Mr. Batchelor was a veterinarian for 40 years at the Beltway Animal Hospital in Towson. He specialized in small animals and was picky about his title, a daughter, Karen Frank, said with a chuckle.
He wanted to be called “Dr. Batchelor” and didn’t like it when people called him mister, she said. “Doc” was his nickname at Baltimore County Game & Fish Protective Association, where he was a former president and a longtime board member.
“He could be serious but he could also be a jokester — kind of a dry sense of humor,” Ms. Frank said. “He was devoted to family, making sure that we all had a good education — very devoted to animals and nature and being a good steward of the earth.”
During his time in BCGF, he was known for helping the youth sight in their rifles since he was an avid marksman and hunter, his family said. He was honored to pass his skills and knowledge to the younger generations, and that included his family, Ms. Frank said.
He would take yearly hunting trips with his son, grandsons and eldest great-grandsons. Mr. Batchelor was known for his loving, kind heart and was always the first to lend out a helping hand, his family said.
“He was very adamant that people learn how to be responsible shooters, and it went with being a good steward of the earth. You really needed to know and be safe,” Ms. Frank said.
Mr. Batchelor, of Hydes in Baltimore County, was born Aug. 15, 1931. His father, Harry, was a mortgage banker and his mother, Catherine, was a homemaker. He graduated from Franklin High School in 1951.
He then studied pre-med at the University of Maryland and was in the local Army National Guard from 1951 to 1954.
He married his late wife, Charlene, in Glyndon in 1954. Mr. Batchelor was married to his late wife for 34 years before he remarried in 1990. The couple moved to Georgia, where he obtained his doctorate of veterinary medicine from the University of Georgia in 1958.
He was honored in 1979 and 1980 as president of the Maryland Medical Veterinary Association.
He was a member of Fork United Methodist Church for 50 years and served as trustee and chair. He was also a member of The Gunpowder Valley Conservancy and was named Volunteer of the Year in 2008.
“He was hauling trees even last year,” Ms. Frank said, adding he led the reforestation program at the GVC. He was a steward of the environment and advocated for people to be ones, too, she said.
He also loved watching “Jeopardy!” and could not be disturbed when the show was on, Ms. Frank said.
“The joke was you never call the house between 7 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. because he wouldn’t pick up,” she said. “It was important to him to be well-versed in a variety of subjects, and he was pretty good at it.”
However, he wasn’t interested in being in becoming a contestant on the show.
“I always remember him watching ‘Jeopardy!’ ” Ms. Frank said. “It was something he enjoyed. It was about knowledge and acquiring knowledge.”
Mr. Batchelor is survived by his wife, Betty, of Baltimore County; a son, Bruce Batchelor, of Parkton; daughters Karen B. Frank of Hydes and Linda Rockafellow of Lynchburg, Virginia; stepdaughters Karen of Baltimore County, Laura Rose of Florida, and Donna Mueller of Harford County; his sister Patricia Eagan of Lebanon, Pennsylvania; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his former wife, Charlene, of Glyndon, who died in 1988.
Visitation was held Friday at E.F. Lassahn Funeral Home in Pennsylvania. The funeral service was Saturday at Fork United Methodist Church, followed by interment at Fork UMC Cemetery.