Cassity, 72, made it to Veterans Day
By Tim Damos / News Republic
Funeral Services — What: Funeral for Robert C. Cassity — When: Sunday, 1 p.m. — Where: St. John’s Lutheran Church, Rock Springs
TOWN OF EXCELSIOR — It was only three hours into the national day of remembrance when Robert "Bob" C. Cassity passed away..
"I honestly think he held on until Veterans Day," said Cassity’s wife of 19 years, Luella Cassity.
The St. John’s Lutheran Church in Rock Springs is making preparations for what is expected to be a large funeral service this Sunday to honor the former military man and devoted public servant who died Wednesday at 72.
While his years of service in local politics made him well-known to many in the area, Bob Cassity’s military significance was less renowned.
"One thing that struck me was I never knew how important he was in the military," said Pastor Paul Schroeder, who developed a friendship with Cassity over the last decade through his involvement with St. John’s Lutheran Church.
Born in the Town of Winfield, Cassity lived with five brothers and five sisters on a family farm before joining the military at a young age to serve as a pilot in the Korean War and Vietnam.
He learned Vietnamese and acted as an advisor on the ground during his first two tours of duty in the latter conflict, living with the locals of the war-torn nation, his wife said.
Cassity served his third tour in Vietnam as a pilot, and cheated death when his aircraft was shot down. Doctors didn’t think he would walk again, and Cassity spent two years at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC.
Years later, while attending War College in California, Cassity walked up to his future wife, Luella, and asked her out with a beaming smile on his face.
"He acted like the cat that ate the canary the first time he came into my shop," Luella Cassity said. "He always had that smile."
Bob Cassity later found himself working at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He retired as a Colonel in 1982 after 27 years of military service.
"He ate, slept and drank it," his wife said. "With all his heart, he loved his country."
The two married in June 1990 and after moving back to the area where he was born, Cassity began raising Red Angus cattle, managing a large heard initially which gradually shrunk in size as he became more involved in local politics.
Cassity also was a member of Reedsburg VFW Post 1916.
Luella Cassity described her husband as a "wonderful role model" to his four children. She said he approached local politics as a diplomat with a strong sense of right and wrong.
"Sometimes he’d get pressured and he’d get excited," said James Paquin, who served with Cassity on the Excelsior Town Board for 12 years. "But mostly, he was pretty easy going. He did a good job."
Cassity chaired that board for four years.
He has represented his area on the Sauk County Board since 1998, serving on and chairing multiple committees.
Pastor Schroeder described Cassity as a compassionate soul with a special place in his heart for animals and nature.
He enjoyed hunting with his grandchildren, and let other outdoorsmen use his land.
Schroeder said Cassity had a personality that could put people at ease with a friendly quip. "He used to joke with me and say, ‘I know my turkeys are safe when you’re hunting them, Pastor.’"
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