Son of Early Palisadian Settlers and Newspaper Family Dies

Robert “Bob” Ernest Clearwater Was 85 Years Old

JENNIKA INGRAM | Reporter

Robert “Bob” Ernest Clearwater, a member of one of the first families to settle in Pacific Palisades, died at the age of 85 at home, surrounded by family, on November 11.

Bob’s parents, Clifford, the original mail carrier in the Palisades, and Zola Clearwater were some of the first settlers of the area in the 1920s. From 1934 to 1960, they owned The Palisadian, which eventually would merge with Pacific Palisades Post and become the Palisadian-Post.

“Everybody loved him, he was a legend, and his family were legends in the Palisades,” Molly Pinero, a close friend and business property manager, shared with the Post.

At an early age, Bob became interested in photography by watching his father take, develop and print photos for the newspaper. And as a father, Bob passed this love of photography onto his only child, Cheryl Kilpatrick.

“My father taught me to include a spot of red when taking photos,” Cheryl said. “He explained that red draws attention and gives viewers a sense of warmth. That was my father. He was that spot red.”

Bob’s parents built a triplex with retail space on Via De La Paz, where they lived upstairs when he was growing up, Pinero explained. Zola, who was once honored as the longest-living Palisidian, lived there until her death in 1994.

Bob’s siblings, who preceded him in death, were Janet and Louis—the second child ever born in the Palisades after it was incorporated as a community.

Zola passed on the family property on Via De La Paz that contains Acai Nation and Krimper’s Hair Salon to Bob and his siblings. The younger generation of cousins will own it next.

As a teenager, Bob spent his summers playing sand volleyball and body surfing on the beaches of Santa Monica and Malibu. He attended University High School and Santa Monica City College.

As a young adult, Bob qualified for the Air Force Aviation Cadet Program and participated in the Aircraft Observer Training. In the 1960s, his love of flying led him to work at the Douglas Aircraft Company, specializing in American aerospace manufacturing.

As an assistant engineer, he worked on the Saturn 5 rocket that launched the first Americans toward the moon.

Bob loved spending his free time hiking and camping in the Cascade and Sierra Nevada Mountain ranges. He was also a downhill skier, road cyclist, photographer and bird watcher.

“There was nothing he couldn’t do,” Pinero added. “He was amazing.”

Bob had a lifelong love of gardening, which began when he was a child by helping his mother with her Victory Garden.

Bob loved adventures and his travels took him near and far, to places like the Galapagos Islands, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Vietnam, Spain and Baja California, among others. He made an effort to learn Spanish, as he was a big fan of Mexico.

In the 1980s, Bob became fascinated with robotics technology. He started his own business, Index Inc., and became a distributor for a company that manufactured Computer Numerical Controlled routers.

He was a Thermwood Distributor for many years, covering the west coast of the United States and Canada.

Bob and Zola donated The Clearwater Collection of photos to the Pacific Palisades Historical Society, in addition to donating many pictures to historian Randy Young and his mother Betty Lou for inclusion in the book, “Pacific Palisades: Where the Mountains Meet the Sea.”

Pinero shared that Bob had such a deep attachment to the Palisades, when he got ill, he wanted to come back here, but it didn’t make sense because he had good care where he was at.

“The Palisades had a special place in his heart,” his daughter Cheryl said. “He would go into stores in the community in the old days and say ‘hello’ and know everyone.”