Robert "Bob" Mackey

Robert J Mackey  April 17, 1947 to November 23,2022

Bob Mackey, lived a very athletic life.  He started as a young boy playing baseball with neighborhood kids, and progressed to playing high school football, basketball and also was on the track team.  He played baseball in the summers till age 15, moved on to the twilight league in Ashtabula as a young adult, and then played softball as an adult. He also umpired HS girls and boys softball and baseball games for 25 years. He enjoyed bowling, was a member on a bowling league, and also loved to play bocce and golf.

You might have seen him jogging in the Ashtabula Harbor the last 40 years, and there was even a photo of him taken on his running route, that was published on the front page of the Star Beacon.  Even when he needed to switch from jogging to walking, he was still out every day that he could getting his exercise.  He would joke that when he walked it took him so much longer to do his route because of all the people he talked to along the way, but he loved that.  And he especially loved seeing all the dogs he knew that greeted him, he referred to them all as his “buddies” and knew them all by name.  It was because of this discipline to exercise and being in such good physical shape, that when he got the diagnosis of Non-Hodgkinson’s lymphoma in 2009 he was able to live with and manage it until 2022 when it had progressed to leukemia.  He continued to fight this illness with everything he had throughout 2022, but in the end, the progression of leukemia with the added complication of Covid-19, it was just too much for his athletic heart to fight any longer.  He passed away on November 23, 2022.

He was a member of the North End Club, following in the footsteps of Hugo Mackey, his father.  He retired from FirstEnergy Credit and Collections dept.  In his retirement he loved golfing as much as he could, especially with his very good friend Mike Julio.  He took pride in keeping his lawn always neatly mowed and landscaped.  He enjoyed watching Ohio State Football, Cleveland Browns, and Cleveland Indians games.   He loved music, especially going to concerts and his favorite was Paul McCartney, having a love of the Beatles growing up..  He also enjoyed watching the Ohio State marching band and a highlight for him was meeting a band member, Kris and getting to talk to her about being a member of the BDBITL.  A beautiful summer day at any of the local wineries, you could find him there with Laura.  He loved to talk to people, so he was always asking people at the wineries where they were from.  He absolutely loved living in the harbor so close to Lake Erie all his life.  He enjoyed nature and animals and spending time with family and friends.  He will be sadly missed by all those who knew and loved him.

He was preceded in death by his parents Florence (2009) and Hugo Mackey (1967), and cousin Freda (Nappi) Couhig, who was like a sister to him because of the closeness in their ages, and also how close their Moms were.

He is survived by his girlfriend Laura Gran, cousins Gary and Donnie Massucci, David and Mary Manupella,  godson JK Petrochello, and nephew TC Couhig (Stephanie). 

We would like to extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to everyone at Dr Varghai’s office who has known and cared for Bob since 2009.  Your personal and professional care will never be forgotten, especially by his family in the past few months.

Thank you to Country Club Retirement Campus and Hospice of Western Reserve for the care they gave to Bob in his final days.

Memorial donations in Bob’s name can be made to St John High School athletic dept.  Envelopes will be available at the funeral home.

Calling hours will be held on Monday November 28, 2022 from 10.30 am to 12:00 pm with a funeral service  to immediately follow at 12:00 pm at Fleming & Billman Funeral Home, 526 W. Propsect Rd, Ashtabula, OH.  Final resting place will be St Joseph’s Cemetery.