Robert Luther Gilstrap, Sr

Robert L. Gilstrap, Sr., 85, passed away peacefully Sunday, September 1, 2013 under the palliative care of the compassionate physicians and nurses of St. Francis Hospital Downtown. He was a son of the late Claud Gilstrap, Sr. and Bertha Irene Gilstrap and husband of the late Francis M. Smith Gilstrap. He was a World War II veteran and purple heart recipient while serving in the Army Air Corps during the occupation of Japan. He was a graduate of the 1944 class of Parker High School, and a letterman in baseball. He was Founder and President of Rod and Tubing, Inc. and Robert Gilstrap, Inc. of Greenville. Surviving, are his son, Robert L. Gilstrap, Jr. of Greenville; a brother, Donald D. "Don" Gilstrap, Sr. of Wilmington, NC; eight nieces and nephews and his extended family of neighbors; Skip and Ryder Martin and their son Ross, to whom he was known affectionately as "old Bob", Ross's surrogate grandfather. The family will receive friends from 3:30 to 4:45 pm on Friday, September 6, 2013 at Thomas McAfee Funeral Home, Downtown. A memorial service will follow at 5:00 pm in the Downtown Chapel. A private interment is scheduled for the following week at Graceland Cemetery, West. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the McCall Hospice House, 1836 W. Georgia Road, Simpsonville, SC 29680.