I have some really sad news. Robert "Robby" Sargent, who was a member of this forum as tollboothrob and attended several meets in the northeast, passed away on May 17th from a seizure at age 37. He previously worked for the NJ Turnpike.
I just found out yesterday so unfortunately the funeral has already passed. His obituary is here: https://www.heavnerandcutright.com/m/obituaries/Robert-Sargent-8/Memories and you can leave a memory for his family to read.
I'd like to share some memories here, too. One of my favorites was when he called out sick from work to attend the Bennington meet and hid behind the "SEND HELP" sign so that no one from his work would find out, lol. The meet where he was able to get us inside the NJTP dispatch was really cool, too. At that meet (which I believe was in 2011 or so) I had pulled a muscle or something and every time I bounced I would say "YAY OWW" and that became our inside joke. The most recent event where I got to see him was at my roadgeek baby shower in 2019 - CPZ was awesome and arranged for him to come (IIRC he actually drove to and from WV to get him). I hate that I lost touch with him in the past two years due to having a baby and then the pandemic. He had a good sense of humor and we spent many times together at his camper in Indian Acres campground in Cecil County, MD and at the MD Roads apartment. He even went with us on a trip to NYC in 2016!
I miss him and am so glad I had the chance to know him.
Way too young :-(
Condolences to family & friends :-(
His family will definitely be in my thoughts and prayers.
Oh wow, I'm so sorry to hear. Condolences to his friends and family. :-(
I remember the Bennington meet. I think we referred to him as "The Unknown Roadgeek" (borrowing from "The Unknown Comic" who appeared on "The Gong Show" years ago).
I bumped into him quite by chance at the Buckhannon Sheetz a few years ago. When you're about 300 miles from home, the last thing you expect is for someone to call your name as you're walking into or out of a business, but he was sitting outside the Sheetz entrance and saw me.
I know his health was not good after his head injury, and I also know that the killing of his mother had haunted him. He was a good guy.
Bummer. :no: Was FB friends with him (not sure if I crossed paths with him at any roadmeets), but lost track of him over the last handful of years.
37 is too young.
We have lost a good friend and a man without an angry bone in his body.
Robert always had great stories from his days at a toll collector working for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, generally at Exit 1 at the south end of the Pike. Including the lady stopping to pay her toll (southbound) that asked him how much further to I-80 (!). Robert had to gently tell her she needed to turn around at the NJ-49 interchange, and drive over 100 miles back to the north end of the Turnpike, and after paying the toll again at the last N.J. Turnpike toll plaza she would see signs for I-80.
He had equally good stories from the other job he had with NJTA - as a dispatcher and calltaker in the Pike's operations center.
My favorite was the person that had broken down on the Pike, and did not really know where he was. A job requirement is being able to figure out where a caller is even when the caller does not know. So the caller told Robert he was near a service plaza. So naturally Robert asked the caller which one? The caller then told him "the one with the Sunoco gas station." To which Robert had to politely tell the caller that all service plazas on the New Jersey Turnpike have Sunoco stations (the Garden State Parkway, also owned and run by NJTA has some gas stations that are not Sunoco).
So then he asked the caller to look around for a small green sign with white numbers (in other words a milepost sign) on it and read the numbers to him. After some discussion, he was able to locate the caller and send assistance.
While I was not familiar with him, I still express my condolences. R.I.P. Robby.
Ugh, I just found this. RIP.
I recall his presence at some meets years ago, and had not heard of him or from him in some time.