Visitation
5 p.m. - 7 p.m.
Service
Committal
Master Sergeant Robert L. Plautz, United States Marine Corps (Retired) died Saturday, December 31, 2022 following a short period of declining health.
Mr. Plautz, 81, was a resident of the North Carolina State Veterans’ Home in Black Mountain, NC and a former resident of Morganton, NC. Born 23 July 1941 in Wausau, WI, he was a son of the late Ernest and Erleen Plautz. Bob spent his formative years in Wausau and after graduating from the Wausau public schools, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. In doing so he followed in the footsteps of his father, who was a decorated Marine combat veteran during some of the most savage fighting of WWII in the Pacific. Bob was a Vietnam War veteran, and during his ensuing 23-year Marine Corps career served all over the world. He was a communications specialist, instructor and recruiter (a billet the Marines fill with their very best people).
Following retirement from the Marine Corps, Bob served fifteen more years as an airport police officer in Greensboro, NC. After retiring from the police department, he relocated to Morganton, NC and worked for several years at Ferguson Copeland Furniture Co.
Bob was a quiet, humble man who loved animals and children. He possessed the finest personal and military character, and was a man of the greatest honor and integrity. A good friend to all who knew him, Bob loved nothing more than walking on Morganton’s Catawba River Greenway. He was well known to all of the dogs being walked on the Greenway, upon whom he never failed to bestow treats and affectionate pets. Additionally, he was an expert birdwatcher with an intimate knowledge of all avian species. A lover of music, Bob could always be found at COMMA shows and events, where he was a season ticketholder. Complementing his love of music, he was also an accomplished ballroom dancer who regularly participated in the dances held at the Morganton Senior Center.
A philanthropist, Bob contributed to many charitable organizations, particularly those benefitting sick or disadvantaged children. He never sought recognition for his giving, but his generosity was consistent and reliable.
Left to cherish Bob’s memory are his special friend, Anne Morgan; his Greenway friends, CAPT David C. Beam, USN (Retired), Brian Herald, Eric Minetola, and many others. Fair Winds and Following Seas, Bob.
The visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m., Thursday, January 5, 2023 at Sossoman Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Burke County Friends for Animals, 417 Kirksey Drive, Morganton, NC 28655.
Sossoman Funeral Home and Crematory Center is assisting the family with the arrangements.
Tribute Wall
Leave a tribute for MSgt Robert L. Plautz, USMC (Ret).
Bob was a good friend of mine for 66 years. My family moved from Rhinelander WI, to Wausau WI, in the summer of 1956, settling next door to the Plautz family on north 6th Ave. I don’t believe we had been in our new home for more than a few days when Bob took the initiative of introducing himself to me and my family. There were few fences separating neighbors in those days and the Plautz and Scholz backyards became joined as our families became friends. Bob and I were adventuresome souls and no part of Wausau was safe from our explorations and sometimes mischief. I was a year older than Bob and after highschool we lost track of one another. I went into the Air Force after highschool and a year later Bob joined the Marines. I got out of the AF, went to college, got married and started a family. I took up residence in the Chicago area. I continued my connections with northern and central Wisconsin, making many trips north to Shawano, WI, where my father and mother were now retired. These trips frequently involved a side trip to Wausau to visit Bob’s mother, Erline, and his sister Carolyn. Bob’s father was gone by then. Erline would keep me posted about Bob and his Marine Corp career and she passed on my life and times to Bob. We had each other’s addresses but our frequency of communication was sporadic, that was more because of me than Bob. Toward the end of her life she expressed to me her fondest wish that Bob and I reconnect. We did. We began a more regular correspondence and grew close once again. Over the past 25 years we grew very close. Bob visited us frequently in Chicago, both alone and with the love of his later life, Ann Morgan of Morganton, NC. I think we had forgotten how close we really were, notwithstanding the many intervening years when we were about our respective lives. I think Bob and I represent why a special friendship is really forever, because when there is affection, deep feeling and respect involving love, separation doesn’t really matter. I often think of Erline and say thank you for bringing us back together and realizing how special we were in each other’s lives. God rest your soul, Bob, and thank you for your friendship.
Nice guy….he was a valued customer at Smokefoot….always enjoyed him walking thru RIP