Robert Mccafferty

Bob was an only child born on June 30, 1938 in Hershey, Pennsylvania. His mother, Georgiana, was an elementary school teacher. His father, Robert, worked for Hershey Chocolate and was an avid outdoorsman, introducing Bob to fly fishing and Alpine skiing. The two of them often made the 8 hour drive to Vermont. Upon graduating Junior College, Bob moved to West Dover, Vermont with his girlfriend Nancy. There they built The Dover Hof, a small ski lodge. On August 30, 1958 Bob and Nancy married each other in the local church. After joining the Canadian Ski Alliance, Bob helped Nancy run the lodge and taught skiing at Mount Snow. Among his many students was the actor Paul Newman. In the summer of 1961 his son Jon was born. After running the lodge for 6 years they sold the business and built a new home in Haystack, a ski area in neighboring Wilmington. Through this experience he became further involved in Real Estate and Property Development with Dover Hills and Kenyon Realty. In 1974 the family moved to Prinecton, NJ where Bob continued to practice both Commercial and Residential Real Estate with Landmark Development and The Trust. In 1979 they moved to Montclair, New Jersey where Bob joined the Garibaldi Group. In 1996 Bob and Nancy purchased a second home in Dorset, Vermont where they would weekend and vacation. In 2000 they moved to Dorset full time and began construction on their dream home. Living back in Southern Vermont full time enabled Bob to get involved with Merck Forest and the Southern Vermont Art Center. Not loving being "retired" he also opened an office in Manchester for LandVest Real Estate. Bob also became involved in Southern Vermont Hospice as a result of his beloved wife Nancy's long battle with cancer. His semi-retirement was also filled with hiking, skiing, tennis, travel and gardening while quietly maintaining his painting practice. On February 28, 2021 Nancy lost her battle with cancer. After 63 years of marriage his family finds comfort knowing Bob and Nancy are together again. Bob is survived by his son Jon, his grandson Willem, Jon's partner, Lisa Feiwel, and her children Rae and Leonardo as well as Willem's mother Jackie Gross. A casual celebration of Bob's life will be held November 6th from 3-6pm at the Southern Vermont Arts Center in Manchester, VT. Donations in Bob's memory may be made to Merck Forest & Farmland Center, Inc or the Southern Vermont Arts Center c/o Brewster-Shea Funeral Home PO Box 885 Manchester Center, VT 05255.