On Friday, May 13th of 2022, the family of Bobby Ruth Trocchio said goodbye to their beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. To put Bobby into words would take as many pages as a set of encyclopedias. She was a little bit of everything all at once, all the time. She was gracious but stubborn. She was modest yet proud. She was joyful but no stranger to grief. She often felt lonely though she made friends everywhere she went. She was courteous and polite but was known to say things that could make a cowboy blush. She was a firecracker, burning bright, soaring high and illuminating the night sky. Having been born on the 4th of July, Bobby always said that she just loved that the whole country made such a big deal out of her birthday every year and she would want to thank each and every one of you for doing so. Bobby Ruth was born in Houston, TX, July 4th, 1939. Born to Viva Welch and Paul Bratcher, Bobby was raised in the dusty west Texas town of San Angelo. She spent many years living with her grandparents but had reunited with her parents by her teen years. She was joined by a sister, Sandy Bratcher during these years. Her family owned a saloon in San Angelo, and she found herself working in her late teens, serving cold beer to cowboys, oilmen and servicemen. One night, Bobby met a couple of German brothers, Leroy, and Theodore “Teddy” Exner. Leroy asked her on a date, but she declined, finding herself far more interested in the pensive and handsome Theodore. They were a perfect match; Bobby liked to talk, and Teddy was a quiet man. After a short courtship, they were married in 1956 and within a couple of years, they had their first child, Karen Lynn. They would be married 14 years and go on to have 3 more children: Donna Kay in 1961, Roger Allen in 1963 and Brenda Gail in 1967. As all good things must end, in 1970, Teddy and Bobby filed for divorce. It wasn’t pretty, as no divorce is, but they managed to become friends in the years that followed. Bobby spent 7 years as a single mother of 4 children, working innumerable jobs of multiple vocations, often holding many at once. Though her ex-husband would often offer help, Bobby was always too proud for handouts, even when she desperately needed them. Her children remember this time as being one of poverty and strain, seeing little of their mother and struggling to make ends meet. In retrospect, this period was abundant in valuable life lessons for her children, providing them with deep insight into things like resourcefulness, hard work and solidarity. They watched their mother make many mistakes and missteps, but they grew stronger and closer for it. Bobby always held tremendous guilt for this period of her life, though her children had long since forgiven her. In 1977, Bobby met the love of her life, Ciro “Jerry” Trocchio. Jerry was a Brooklyn-born Italian, with a larger-than-life personality that would fill a room. At his behest, they moved to Queens, New York where Bobby was taught by Jerry’s mother and sister-in-law Cookie how to properly cook for an Italian man. Jerry was an Old-World scratch baker in the tradition of his Italian heritage and the couple soon opened a pizzeria in Greenwich Village in 1979. After several years in New York, Bobby insisted they return to Texas to be near her children, who were now starting to have children of their own. In 1986, they relocated back to the Dallas area and opened another pizzeria in Frisco, Texas. It quickly became a popular hangout for high school students of the time. Bobby and Jerry’s marriage was marked, especially in the early years, by tumultuousness born from alcoholism. Years of drinking soon took its toll on their health and in the late 1980’s, they dedicated themselves to sobriety, family, and God. This time soon became their golden years, when they surrounded themselves with family and their most prized possession, their grandchildren. Holidays were of particular importance, where Bobby was known to prepare multi-course traditional Italian meals for all her children and grandchildren. It is here that Bobby finally found her truest self, in the service of her loving family. Her family will always remember the pure joy in her face as she watched them eat the best food ever made. These were her happiest moments, full of laughter, love, and togetherness. When Jerry retired in the early 1990s, Bobby and Jerry began to travel, seeing as much of the country as they could. In 1996, they decided to relocate to Pryor, Oklahoma, seeking a quiet and quaint life. They remained in Pryor until Jerry’s death in 2008. After his passing, Bobby returned to the Dallas/Fort Worth area to once again be near her children. She spent the last years of her life taking trips with family and seeing the births of her first great-grandchildren. If there was one thing Bobby liked to brag about it, to anyone who would listen, it was her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She saw herself in each one of them and always encouraged them to follow their hearts and to be true to themselves. She was so very proud that they all, each one, have done just that. Bobby will be remembered forever because she lived a life that was too big to be forgotten. She will be loved forever because she gave enough love to last through generations. Her family knows she’s in Heaven now, talking the ears off Grandpa Ted and Grandpa Jerry, letting them know just how great the family they created has become. She is survived by four children, Karen Dillon and husband Donald of Granbury, Texas, Donna Anderson and husband W.B. of Ft. Worth, Texas, Brenda Magallanes and husband Socorro of Tulsa, Oklahoma and Roger Exner and wife Cheryl of Farmersville, Texas; ten grandchildren, Stephanie Booker and husband Dwight, Nicki Bonds and spouse Lee Kosakowski, TJ Bonds and spouse Aspen Morgado, Hannah Bonds and spouse Robert Bambach, Chelsie Wiggins and husband Jerry, Casey Daniels and wife Amanda, McKenzie Exner, Christina Fritz, Tammy Fritz-Rojas and husband Christopher and Tye Blanton; eight great grandchildren; sister, Sandra Salinas of San Angelo, Texas; special cousins, Wesley Reed and Floyd Wayne Moore and many nieces, nephews and other extended family and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Jerry in 2008 and her first husband, Theodore “Teddy” Exner.