Bob (Fred Robert) Allen of O'Fallon, Missouri, passed away on May 12, 2026, due to complications from Alzheimer's disease. He is survived by his beloved wife, Judy; daughters Beth and Julie Allen (Joe Burke); son Bob Allen (Mandy Allen); granddaughters Fiona, Rory, Lucy, and Daisy; and sister Frances Shane (Charles).

Bob was born and raised in Granite City, Illinois, graduating from Granite City High School in 1958 and beginning his working life at Granite City Steel Company. While working at the steel mill, he was encouraged to enroll in the arts education program at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he earned his B.S. degree. Along the way, Bob met his wife, Judy, while working at her father's auto parts store in Granite City. After they fell in love, he enrolled as a master's student in ceramics and art history at Illinois State University, where Judy was completing her undergraduate degree. They married in 1967 and moved to Edwardsville, where Bob completed his MFA in ceramics in 1969.

Hired as the first full-time ceramics instructor at St. Louis Community College at Meramec in 1970, Bob went on to teach ceramics there for 33 years. He was a beloved teacher and mentor to numerous students and remained deeply connected to a community of artists throughout the Midwest and far beyond. He was a founding member of Craft Alliance in University City, Missouri, and created the Meramec Pottery Club, which hosted workshops and demonstrations by prominent ceramic artists from across the United States, as well as Japan, Korea, Peru, Canada, and England.

After retiring from Meramec in 2003, Bob maintained a studio at the Foundry Art Centre in St. Charles for 10 years. In addition to participating in numerous art fairs throughout the 1970s and 1980s, his work has been exhibited at galleries, museums, and educational institutions, including the University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis City Art Museum, St. Louis Community College at Meramec, Maryville University, Southern Illinois University, and the St. Louis Artists' Guild. He received awards for both his artwork and teaching, including recognition from Meramec's Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. He also made an annual donation of pottery to be auctioned as part of the Empty Bowls Project, benefiting the work of Operation Food Search in St. Louis.

Beyond his artistic career, Bob was known for his love of music and sports, as well as his dedication to community service. Baseball was a central part of his life for many years: he coached Little League, taught pitching, served on the boards of the Ballwin Athletic Association, the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Association, and the Metro Collegiate Baseball Association, and spent time as Ballwin's Umpire-in-Chief. He also played tennis and golf and officiated at U.S. Swimming meets. He taught Sunday school, served as a youth group leader, and was a former PTO president. Long after his marching band days, he continued to play trumpet and French horn, picked up the guitar, and loved attending plays and musicals at The Muny and STAGES with Judy.

Bob was gregarious and generous. He loved people, and especially his family. He often said that while he was proud of his achievements as a potter, his children were his greatest creation. Any serious conversation with him would inevitably lead to stories about his wife-how amazing she was and how he did not know how he would have made it through life without her. He will be greatly missed.

Services: A visitation will be held at the SCHRADER Funeral Home and Crematory, 14960 Manchester Road at Holloway, Ballwin, MO on Tuesday, May 19th from 2:00-4:00 p.m. followed by a service at 4:00 p.m. and reception at the FAMILY CENTER at Schrader Funeral Home and Crematory from 5:00-7:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Alzheimer's Disease Research (brightfocus.org/stopAD) or Operation Food Search (operationfoodsearch.org). Friends may sign the family's on-line guestbook at Schrader.com.