Bob Savage, one of 13 children of George N. Savage and Ruth Eleanor Trowbridge Savage of Danville Virginia, grew up in the mostly rural area of southwest Virginia both in town and on his family's farm during the Great Depression and World War II. He was known for his ready smile and sense of humor, and willingness to help anyone in need. He played basketball for his high school, and the Danville YMCA, which his father managed until his death in 1947.

He met his future wife Carol on the first class of the first day of high school in 1944, where he arranged to sit near her as he was smitten by her good looks. They began dating shortly afterwards. They both say they met and fell in love with the love of their life that day, and always knew marriage was in their future. However, Bob had to first get started on a career.

In 1950, Bob became Airman Robert T Savage, USAF, and went to school for electronics and, later, simulators for the new jets the Air Force was beginning to fly in the 1950's. He was stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida, in his early career, where he was assigned to check out the radios in aircraft on the flight line, and to fly sorties in B-25's as a crew member.

On February 9, 1952 Bob and Carol were married in Danville, and moved to Tyndall Air Force Base. Carol wasn't used to the noise of an active base, but loved the soft white sand beaches on the Gulf Coast. Their three children were born there.

Over the next few years the Air Force assigned them to bases in Valdosta, Ga., Dennison, Texas, and Bitburg Air Base in the Saar region of Germany. Because of the tension surrounding the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the family had to stay behind in Danville, living with Carol's parents for a short time before being allowed to fly to Germany and join Bob. Until quarters became available on base, the family lived in a rented house in the small German village of Bettingen not far from Bitburg. During his time there, he became active in the Boy Scouts, becoming an Assistant Scoutmaster, and brought Don into the troop when he was old enough.

Following that assignment, Bob received orders to Bergstrom AFB in Austin, Texas, then to Carswell AFB in Fort Worth, Texas. From there, his next assignment was at Castle Air Force Base in Atwater, California, where he continued his work on simulators and with the Boy Scouts.

Following that, he was assigned to Plattsburgh Air Force Base in Upstate New York, where he transitioned to working on the new high-tech FB-111 aircraft simulator. Within a few years, he rose to the rank of Senior Master Sergeant, and was appointed the Base Sergeant Major.

During his time there he was very active in senior leadership roles in the Adirondack Council of the BSA, and was camp director of Camp Bedford for a season.

His next assignment was Seymore Johnson AFB in Goldsboro, N.C. During that tour, he was deployed to Bergen, Norway to support a NATO exercise. At the same time Don, who had joined the Navy in 1975, was stationed on a ship which had a week-long port call in Bergen, where he and his father got the chance to tour the area together.

Bob retired from the Air Force after 27 years at the rank of Senior Master Sergeant at Seymore Johnson.

Bob and Carol lived briefly in Clarksville, Va before moving back to Goldsboro, where he got a job as a plant manager in General Industries, where he worked until 1992.

In 1998, the couple moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. There, he continued his prodigious efforts supporting the Boy Scouts in the Pikes Peak Council. He and Carol traveled the West making camp visits to inspect them for suitability to host Scouts on summer camps. He also taught numerous adult leadership training camp called Woodbadge, where his influence helped shape the character of thousands of boys over the years. He gradually grew less able to to keep up the pace and reluctantly ended his 50+ year association with his beloved Boy Scouts. He earned numerous awards and honors, including the prestigious Silver Beaver, the Order of the Arrow Vigil honor, Woodbadge beads, and many others.

He was followed in death 13 days later by Carol after 68 years of marriage.