13 In the 1942 lm Casablanca, Arthur “Dooley” Wilson sings, “ e fundamental things apply as time goes by,” a quote cherished by Bob Gibbons ’65. Bob is a storyteller. With three books to his name, a history of writing during his time in the US Army, a distinguished tenure as an editor at Kodak spanning 40 years, and his current project, Becoming Aquinas, Bob’s storytelling prowess transcends mere writing. But Bob says he wasn’t always a writer. During his time at Aquinas, he sampled a little bit of everything. Did you participate in any extracurriculars at Aquinas? My goal at Aquinas was to sample a bit of everything the school had to o er. I played drums, and for a brief time, I participated in the Aquinas Marching Band. I was editor of the Arete, my senior yearbook. I was a member of several clubs. I went to all the football and basketball games. During my junior and senior years, I served proudly as student manager of the track & eld team, helping to keep score and set up equipment at various events. Outside of school, I was in a rock band with my friends and even performed at an Aquinas pep rally. It was important to me to get involved in di erent things so that I could test out what I liked and what I didn’t like. You’ll never know what interests you until you try it. Bob credits Aquinas for not only providing him with a solid education, but for instilling in him the fundamental skills, that he believes, have shaped his life. How did your experience at Aquinas impact your life after high school? So many of the facts and formulas, information we memorize, and technology we use in school will be out-of-date not long a er we graduate. But the fundamentals and values we learn including how to read more widely, listen more closely, write more creatively, think more clearly, and treat people more gently, will never change. ey’ll serve us forever. I don’t remember any of the classroom speci cs. I don’t remember dates or certain events. But that’s okay, because what did stick with me were the fundamentals of life. Every school is going to teach you the core subjects and the facts, but Aquinas gives you something more! At this age, when you are trying to gure out who you are, it’s great to go to a school that helps you do just that, and helps you gure out your values. Bob went on to receive his bachelor’s from the University of Notre Dame in 1969. Although Bob had planned to pursue a career in international marketing, he found he liked to write and started gravitating towards jobs that involved writing. Roughly two weeks a er graduation, he joined Eastman Kodak and ended up writing just about everything, including newsletters, audiovisual programs, movies, advertisements, commercials, and so much more. Can you describe how writing became such a big part of your life? When my bosses at Kodak wanted to create a newsletter but couldn’t nd anyone to write it, I saw an opportunity and volunteered. I thought, “Hey, if I can get good at this, it could be fun.” I did become quite pro cient, but my life took a di erent turn when I was dra ed into the US Army in March of 1970. I recall fellow soldiers in the Army approaching me, saying, “You’re a writer, right?” Struggling with imposter syndrome, I initially denied it. However, it wasn’t long before I found myself working as a journalist in the Army. Over my two years of service, I was honored to receive three CONARC Copy Desk Awards for Excellence in Army Journalism (during that time, about one in every thirty- ve hundred Army journalists won a Copy Desk Award – Bob had won three while writing and editing for Veritas). Following my service in the Army, I returned to Kodak and was appointed as the company’s chief speechwriter for the CEO and President, a position of considerable responsibility. To enhance my skills, in 1989, Kodak sent me to the Newhouse School at Syracuse University where I obtained a master’s degree in Communications. Surprisingly, my thesis paper turned out to be unexpectedly enjoyable. I completed it in just a week and a half, a task I never imagined would be so ful lling. Bob had lived in Rochester most of his life. It wasn’t until 1994 when Kodak relocated him, his wife, and their three children to California. ere, he managed public relations and marketing for Kodak’s movie business in Hollywood. Bob had the remarkable opportunity to attend numerous Oscars and Emmys, and he even had the privilege of meeting celebrities such as Steven Spielberg and Bob Newhart. Your time in Hollywood sounds glamorous… did you enjoy it? I was never really into the celebrity lifestyle. I recall a photographer snapping pictures of me and Spielberg, asking how many copies I wanted. I couldn’t see the point and thought, “What am I going to do with them?” However, I did have the pleasure of meeting Bob Newhart, a stand-up comedian I admired at the time. One night, we spent hours chatting about life. It was the exchange of stories and the opportunity to re ect on life that I found most enjoyable. Bob wrote his rst book, Notre Dame Class of 1969: Commemorating Our 50th Anniversary with three other classmates, John Hickey, Gary Campana, and Dave Sim. John suggested they compile some posts they had all written from the Class of ’69 blog, add some new material, and put it all together as one book on their class history. When the book proved popular, they decided to write another. It wasn’t until around 2017 that Bob wrote this third book. Growing Up on Oriole Street: A Rochester Boyhood and Beyond is a book comprised of the notes and chapters Bob originally planned to leave behind for just his three children and ve grandchildren. What started out as just a big blue binder of notes intended to pass on to his family when he passed, took an unexpected turn and grew into this rst book he wrote by himself. is book truly captures Bob’s passion for storytelling. In one of its chapters, he wrote about his four years at Aquinas. alumni news spotlights Robert (Bob) Gibbons ’65: THE FUNDAMENTALS NEVER CHANGE
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