It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, friend and mentor, Robert (Bob) Parke Chilton on June 30, 2022.

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Born on August 25, 1935, he was adopted in 1940 by Harold and Annie Chilton. Six years later his brother Johnny joined the family.

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Growing up in McAuley and Virden, Manitoba for the next thirteen years, Bob lived a life that wasn’t easy and taught him many hard lessons. Despite the hardships, he fondly remembered being a member of the Virden Boy Scouts and attending Virden Collegiate High School. In 1952, at the tender of age of 17, Bob left school to join the Lord Strathcona Horse, a tank regiment based out of Calgary, Alberta. By 1953, he was in Werl, Germany for a two-year tour.

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After his return from overseas, Bob lived the bachelor’s dream buying nice cars and working across Manitoba, British Columbia and Alberta for companies that included Haliburton Oil Well Cementing and Manitoba and B.C. Hydro. That all changed in 1963 when he met a beautiful young lady named Joyce Milligan while trying to check in to the City Centre Motor Hotel. They eloped on January 2, 1964 and spent the next 58 years together as ‘The Chiltons’.

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Bob was blessed with the family life he’d always needed through the Milligans. Time spent with Joyce’s parents, brothers and sisters were instrumental in Bob’s life and taught him not to mess with sisters. Although you may hear a story or two about big, stern Uncle Bob, this gruffness was only masking his deep love and admiration for his nieces, nephews and their families.

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Bob and Joyce enjoyed an adventurous life, living and working all over Canada from Hudson Hope, BC to Toronto, ON before they finally settled down in Winnipeg to be near family in Manitoba. Although they weren’t eager to expand their family with children too soon, they always had a full house thanks to their love of animals. Bob’s love of his pets continued from his childhood dog Toby to his cherished cats Smokey and Bandit, and all the dogs and horses in between that he and Joyce made a home for.

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In addition to a long and successful career at CoinCo Canada, Bob was a lover of sports and lifelong Montreal Canadiens fan. When not curling or playing hockey, tennis, golf, or squash he could be found coaching lacrosse. Baseball was also a favourite at Rock Lake where the St. Boniface Tomahawks could be found battling with Brad’s Icecaps and The Rawhides.

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From the day their only son Robb was born in 1974, he was Bob’s pride and joy. One of his greatest sources of happiness was seeing the person Robb has become. Every one of Robb’s friends and neighbours could tell you stories of Bob because he was never far away; attending music shows to watch Robb drum, helping with vending machines, and often just popping in to say “hi” when he “just happened to be in the neighbourhood”. 

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The only thing that rivaled Bob’s love of being a father was being a grandfather. ‘Grumpa’ took every opportunity he could to spend time with Conally and Eliot and took great pride in attending their activities and spending time with them. As with every occasion in life, he was usually there with a camera around his neck capturing everyone’s favourite memories. In addition to all the beautiful moments he caught on film, nothing pleased him more than an embarrassing photo which was always sure to show up in picture books, holiday cards and on Facebook with a big laugh.

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Bob is survived by his wife Joyce, son Robb (Christine, Conally and Eliot) and many friends and family. Although no longer with us in body, his heart and soul will live on in all who had the honour to be loved by him.

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Bob's family kindly requests that all of his friends and relatives take a few minutes to honour his memory by watching the photo-biography above. Please, also consider sharing your own photos, memories, and stories by making use of the comment section on this page.