Robert (Bob) Adams, 82, of Lincoln, Massachusetts, died peacefully on Aug. 22, 2026, after a courageous journey with leukemia. He was surrounded by his wife and children in his final days.

Bob was born to Clayton and DeVera (née Dunaway) Adams in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, on July 3, 1944. He arrived the day between the birthdays of his father and the nation, inspiring a lifetime of joyous family celebrations over Independence Day holidays. Bobby and his older sister Sandy shared a mutual adoration, together navigating backyard Tonka truck adventures, joint ownership of comic books, and the hallways of Glen Ridge Central School.

In 1957, the family moved to Media, Pennsylvania. On his first day at his new junior high school, Bob met Judith McFarland, the girl with whom he would eventually share his life. Although Judy immediately identified him as the “cute, tall, new boy,” they spent the entirety of their time at Penncrest High School as good friends, graduating together in 1962.

Bob graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1966 with a degree in political science and his friendship with Judy still very much intact. Immediately after graduation, he reported to Navy Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. He was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy later that year. The combination of his natural charm and newly earned officer’s uniform finally tipped the romance scales in Bob’s favor. Upon returning from his first deployment, he asked for Judy’s hand. They were married on Oct. 7, 1967.

The couple rented their first apartment on Elm Street in Newport’s historic Point neighborhood while Bob was stationed at Naval Base Newport aboard the destroyer USS Charles H. Roan (DD-853). Lt. Adams deployed to the Mediterranean twice aboard the Roan, completing his active-duty service in 1969. He would serve another eight years in the United States Naval Reserve.

That fall Bob matriculated at Villanova University School of Law. Following his 1972 graduation, Bob and Judy settled in Rockport, Maine, and Bob began his legal career as an Associate in the Camden office of future Maine Supreme Court Justice David Nichols.

After two Maine winters, the couple returned to Pennsylvania where Bob joined the West Chester firm of Gawthrop Greenwood. He would remain with the firm for 40 years, rising to the role of Managing Partner and earning the respect of peers throughout Chester County for his sharp mind, warm collegiality, and wry wit. Specializing in land use and development law during a period of tremendous growth in the county, Bob skillfully navigated the complex and often competing interests of diverse stakeholders, helping clients pursue progress with thoughtfulness and foresight. He was admitted to the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and the United States Supreme Court.

Bob was committed to fostering connections among his colleagues, serving as President of the Chester County Bar Association, as Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Municipal Law Section, and multiple terms in the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s House of Delegates. He was a Founder and early President of the Chester County Bar Foundation and a frequent lecturer at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute.

While Bob’s professional life revolved around development in the county, his favorite pastime centered on preservation. In 1978, Bob and Judy purchased a Westtown farmhouse whose original rooms dated to the early 19th century. Over the next 37 years, they lovingly restored and maintained the house, barn, and grounds. Some of Bob’s happiest hours were spent in the yard alongside Judy – mowing, raking, pruning, hauling, planting, weeding, and watering, as well as caring for their two miniature donkeys. Bob considered himself not an owner of the property but its steward. Grateful for the mature trees that shaded the yard during his lifetime, he planted new specimens in the hope that others would enjoy their shade long after his time there had passed.

The home Bob and Judy built in Westtown was the setting for their proudest accomplishment – raising their three children. With boundless love, they taught their kids how to share, how to laugh, and how to be good neighbors. They modeled hard work, showing up for others, and living life with integrity. Bob transmitted life’s important lessons at the dinner table every night, on long station-wagon rides to the beaches of North Carolina, from the bleachers and sidelines of countless school sporting events, and from his den chair during Eagles games.

When their children grew up and settled in New England, Bob and Judy returned to the place where they had begun their life together – the shores of Narragansett Bay, settling in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. After eight years, they moved once more, this time to The Commons in Lincoln, a retirement community in Massachusetts.

Wherever he lived, Bob believed that citizenship in a community came with a responsibility to serve, and he fulfilled that responsibility in countless ways. Among his deepest commitments were as an Elder at First Presbyterian Church in West Chester and then as a Trustee at United Congregational Church in Middletown, Rhode Island. He served as Chair of the Board of Legal Aid of Chester County, Chair of the Chester County Board of Health, and Chair of the Board of Managers of The Hickman Friends Senior Community of West Chester. Bob was a long-time member of the Westtown-Goshen Rotary Club, a dedicated East High School sports booster, and a regular High Adventure trip leader for Boy Scouts of America Westtown Township Troop 66.

He was also a devoted Red Cross blood donor. Bob believed that his status as a universal donor came with an obligation to share that gift as often as he could, and for many years, he scheduled regular donations at the minimum permitted interval. Decades later, when his own bone marrow faltered, the generosity of other donors sustained his platelet and red blood cell count for months.

Bob is survived by his best friend and wife of 59 years, Judith (née McFarland) Adams; his children Clayton (Elizabeth) Adams of Hanover, New Hampshire; Pamela Adams Baker of Cambridge, Massachusetts; and David (Samantha) Adams of Dover, Massachusetts; eight grandchildren whom he adored; and his sister Sandra Cranford of Scarborough, Maine. He is also survived by his beloved Golden Retriever Zoe who will dearly miss her favorite walking partner.

A funeral service for Bob will take place at Trinity Church in the City of Boston (206 Clarendon Street, Boston) on Sept. 10, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., with a reception at the church immediately following. A private family interment will take place separately.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that gifts in memory of Bob be made to support a cause close to his heart:

The Hickman Friends Senior Community of West Chester, a senior living community rooted in Quaker values where Bob volunteered and served as Board Chair for many years; gifts will support the construction of affordable housing for low-income seniors.

Brigham and Women’s Hospital Nursing and Patient Care Services Fund, which serves to provide the nurses who cared so compassionately for Bob with meaningful learning opportunities to advance their educational and professional goals.

Arrangements have been entrusted to Dee Funeral Home & Cremation Service of Concord.