'His hobby was service': Bob Ward, longtime educator and Ocala leader, dies at 96

Bob Ward – husband, father, World War II veteran, Eagle Scout and namesake of R.L. Ward-Highlands Elementary School – died on June 7, 2022, at age 96.

Former Ocala Chief of Police Morrey Deen knew Ward as his principal at Ocala Junior High School (now Eighth Street Elementary School) in the late 1950s and for years as a neighbor in southeast Ocala.

He called Ward a "tremendous role model" and an educator who was active in the community in numerous outreaches.

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"(Ward) was an inspiration," Deen said.

Ward began a 30-year career with Marion County Public Schools as an educator and principal in 1949. He was a 58-year member of the Ocala Lions Club, founded Boy Scout Troop 196, and served as scoutmaster for 25 years, according to a biography supplied by his family.

"(My father) truly loved service. His hobby was service, " said his son Bill.

Bob Ward was there from the beginning

Bob Ward was a part of the fabric of then-Highlands Elementary from the ground up: He was on the construction site before the school opened in 1959, according to his family, and he served as the first principal.

He was known to go to the facility to clean graffiti at night so students would not see their school dirtied.

Judy Long-Starnes was a teacher at then-Highlands Elementary from 1962 until around 1970, when she worked in an administrative position at the school and then became an elementary supervisor in 1985.

Now retired, Long-Starnes lives near Keystone Heights. Long-Starnes said in the mid-1960s Ward required teachers to make “in-home" visits to the families of each of their students.

Her class had about 30 students, and the visits were an eye-opener, she said.

Long-Starnes described Ward as a humble person who did a lot of the hard behind-the-scenes work, but was modest and didn't seek recognition.

"Bob Ward was a 'kids' person' and always put the (students) in the forefront," Long-Starnes said.

Nancy Gallery was an educator at R.L. Ward-Highlands Elementary for 35 years and retied in 2008. Ward was her principal for seven years.

"(Bob Ward) was great to work for: kind, and always interested in the students, teachers and their families," Gallery said.

Gallery said Ward kept in touch with the families for years at group luncheons, including when he had his 93rd birthday. Many former school staff members sent him birthday cards.

She said the luncheons were suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gallery said in 2015, when her grandson Jacob received his Eagle Scout award, Bob Ward presented him with an Eagle Scout kerchief during a ceremony.

The school was renamed R.L. Ward-Highlands Elementary in 1979 to honor Ward’s service.

A contemporary news report about the school's name change stated: "Ward has been principal of the east side Ocala school since it was built in the late 1950s. Thousands of children have spent their early education in the school and many of the parents of those children want Ward remembered as an outstanding contributor to the children's development."

The article stated Bob Ward rebuffed the effort, saying, "he is still living" and "a school should not be named for a person."

A look at the Ward family

Bob Ward married Marion (Betty) Sheen, whom he met in Palm Beach, in 1948. The Wards had four children: Bill, 64; Trina Leary, 70; Shelley Jackson, 73; and Robert III, who died in 2019 from pancreatic cancer.

All of the children spent at least some grades at Highlands Elementary. The siblings gathered recently to share memories of their father.

Robert L. "Bob" Ward Jr., was born in West Palm Beach on Oct. 29, 1925, to Dr. Robert L. Ward Sr., a dentist, and Katie Ruth Spiegner Ward, an educator, according to a biography supplied by his family.

Ward joined the U.S. Army in 1943, shortly after graduating from high school, and served in the Army Air Corps as a pilot in the China, Burma and the India theater of operations, the biography indicates.

Ward would later fly single-engine aircraft as a hobby.

Ward attended the University of Florida on the GI Bill and earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees in education and guidance. By the 1949-50 school year he had been recruited to work in Ocala with Marion County Public Schools, according to his family.

Ward was a science teacher at Ocala Junior High and principal of Fort McCoy Elementary prior to becoming principal of Highlands Elementary. Ward also held real estate and general contractor licenses, the biography states.

After retiring from MCPS in 1979 he worked with Midstate Federal as a vice president in construction loans, appraisals and inspections until 1991, according to the biography.

In the 1990s Ward helped his sons Bill and Robert III as a volunteer in their Ward Construction and Roofing Co., according to this family.

A lifetime of service to the community

As a 58-year member of the Ocala Lions Club, Ward established two Ocala Lions Club Endowed Scholarship in nursing and sight, in the names of local doctors Dr. Charles Marks and Dr. Abe Shashy. Ward's name was recently added to the doctors' names on the scholarship program by the Ocala Lions Club, the biography states.

Scouting was an important part of Ward's life, beginning at age 11. He attained Eagle Scout rank while in Troop 13 in Palm Beach at age 14 and remained active in scouting until his late 80s, the biography states.

Ward enjoyed fishing and he made fishing trips to numerous locales including the Bahamas, Canada, Alaska and the Panama Canal. He also enjoyed caring for a 25-acre orange grove on Carney Island, and was known to give the oranges to fiends, according to the biography.

Ward was a member of Highlands Baptist Church before joining Trinity Baptist Church. He has nine grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, one great-great-grandchild and niece.

Bob Ward said recently that ”above all” he loved his family, the biography stated.

"(My father) went peacefully to the Lord," Billy Ward said.

Memorial donations can be made to Trinity Baptist Church or the Ocala Lions Club Endowed Scholarship.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala, Florida remembers Bob Ward, longtime educator and leader