Robert Rush (Bob) Chandler, aged 72, of Ventura, passed away in the early hours of May 2nd, 2020 at Community Memorial Hospital after a brief illness. Bob was born in Washington, D.C. to Herbert and Dorothy (Dowd) Chandler on June 27th, 1947. He was a Vietnam combat veteran who served honorably in the Navy aboard the USS Constitution. Bob graduated with his M.D. from the University of Nebraska Medical School in 1979 and moved to Ventura for residency. He loved living here and surfed often to relax for many years. Bob practiced medicine for 33 years, the majority of that time as an emergency physician in Southern California before retiring in 2015. Caring for people and animals was important to him, and he had recently adopted a cat named Bella. He was a longtime LA Lakers fan and loved watching their games; he especially enjoyed watching them beat the Boston Celtics. For the last several years he has enjoyed volunteering with the Ventura High School boys and girls basketball teams who knew him as ‘Doc’, and being on hand to treat any injuries suffered by players. In recent years he enjoyed gardening and especially took pride in his tomato plants, about which he would often brag to his relatives back east when they were still producing fruit well into the winter.
Bob is survived by his wife of 35 years, Denise Chandler, of Ventura. He is also survived by his daughter Jennifer Chandler (Los Angeles), daughter and son-in-law Lindsey & Geoff Gilbert (Seattle), son Cameron Chandler (Ventura) and one granddaughter, Vennela Gilbert (Seattle). He is also survived by his sister and brother-in-law, JoAnn and Jim Hasty of Silver Spring, MD and nephew Davis Hasty of Virginia. He is preceded in death by his parents and his nephew, Gil Chandler Hasty.
In lieu of flowers, you may make memorial donations to the Southern Poverty Law Center (https://donate.splcenter.org/) or Ventura County Animal Services (http://www.vcas.us/help-the-animals/ways-to-give), if you wish. Due to the current conditions there will be no immediate service, however arrangements are under the direction of the Joseph P. Reardon Funeral Home & Cremation Service in Ventura. If you would like to be notified of any memorial service that we may hold in the future, please leave your contact information in the guestbook online at: https://www.currentobituary.com/member/obit/243562