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Robert Hugh Newell, 91

Robert Hugh Newell walked into the company of Jesus on Monday, Oct. 8, 2018, at the Schneidmiller Hospice House in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. He was 91 years old. He was a cherished husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather.

Bob was born on Jan. 25, 1927, at his family home in Ola, Idaho. He was the youngest of seven children and the last survivor. His parents were Edwin Lincoln (Todd) Newell and Annie Delilah Roder Newell. He grew up on the family ranch working and playing hard. He graduated from Emmett High School in 1944 and got special permission from his parents to enlist in the U.S. Navy at age 17. This was particularly significant because two of his older brothers, Emmett and Glenn, were prisoners of war in the Pacific. They were captured on Wake Island at the very beginning of the war with several other Idaho young men.

After his discharge from the Navy in 1946, he attended the University of Idaho where he met his wife, Verda Long from Salmon, Idaho. They were married on Dec. 20, 1949, in Moscow, Idaho, and he graduated in 1950 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

His career was marked by success in a variety of fields, from owning a hardware store in Cambridge, Idaho, to selling insurance and real estate, to building his own house with his son, Jim. In midlife, he returned to the University of Idaho and earned master’s and doctorate degrees. During this time he directed a program of distributive education when it was first developed and he was a professor at Washington State University. He and his wife, Verda, went on to start a business school called Shadow Mountain Business Careers located in Boise, which trained students in all aspects of business. He had many creative ventures including writing an early curriculum for training young students in Microsoft Word and Excel.

He is remembered as being confident and willing to learn anything (even if it meant teaching himself before YouTube existed to help). At the same time, he was very humble and put others before himself. He once told his doctor that he wanted to keep living as long as he could help others. Kindness and generosity were two of his main characteristics. In these ways, he was like Jesus.

Bob is survived by his wife of almost 69 years, Verda, and his three children, Nikki Warnick, Jim Newell and Julie Yetter. He also has 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

A memorial service will be scheduled in Coeur d’Alene in early January. If interested, please contact Julie Yetter: jjyettter@frontier.com

Yates Funeral Home has been entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit Bob’s memorial and sign his online guest book at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com