Robert Stephens I

On September 26, 2021, Rob Stephens, 56, along with Pam, his beloved wife of 30 years, tragically lost their lives in an aircraft accident south of Billings, MT. Rob was born on September 8, 1965, to parents Rob and Zena Stephens in Edmonds, Washington. After Rob Sr. graduated from law school the family moved back to Montana and settled south of Billings on Blue Creek. Rob grew up alongside his cousins, the Blains, cruising on motorcycles, swimming in the mud pit, floating the Yellowstone River without life jackets, raising baby skunks, training pet raccoons, hunting, working on his grandfather's cattle ranch, fly fishing, driving tractors, working heavy machinery, flying airplanes, and, thanks to more than occasional lapses of adult supervision, participating in all manners of mischief and mayhem. In retrospect, Rob liked to say that he grew up a little feral. These were the glory days of Rob's childhood which, though not absent of pain or hardship, shaped him into the man he came to be. Rob caught the aviation bug early on from his 13-year-old cousin, Gary, who began teaching Rob to fly in a Piper Super Cub when Rob was only about 10 or 11 years old. Rob soloed for the first time at the advanced age of 12. These flying days along the Yellowstone with his cousins ignited a lifelong passion for aviation in Rob, and his many hours of working with his grandfather, Almon Walborn, on the Mission Ranch at the base of the Absaroka mountains near Livingston instilled in Rob a strong work ethic, a deep love for the big sky country, and a wild zest for life. Rob had a wonderful sense of adventure. He was always dreaming of the next big opportunity or looking for ways to improve the ones he had. He was fun, playful, and exhibited a boyish enthusiasm at the prospect of any new quest, like moving his family to Montana each summer for 5 years so his children could experience the joy of country living, or whisking his dad off to Alaska for a 3-day salmon fishing trip with little to no planning. He was never put off by a set-back, never deterred by defeat, but always ready to rally and revise his plans as necessary. When faced with a problem, Rob never gave up. He exhausted every resource he had to resolve the issue himself. He believed in the value of hard work, determination, persistence, and faith, attributes he often accredited to the male influences in his life, not only his father, but also men like Uncle Gerhart, Grandpa Walborn, and his stepfather, Ralph Wright. These traits served him well throughout his life, perhaps especially in pursuit of the love of his life, Pam, whom Rob had met during Trigonometry at Senior High School at the beginning of his sophomore year. While Rob was completely smitten at first sight, Pam was reticent, resisting Rob's charms all the way through college, determined to chase her own career aspirations, which took her to Washington DC. Meanwhile, Rob graduated from MSU with a bachelor's degree in finance and began his aviation career. He started out, as most professional pilots do, as a flight instructor. He worked for his Uncle Gerhart crop dusting for a summer and then worked his way into an air cargo company. He used to recall that he walked into the office after being denied the job to ask if he could simply sit in on the training process for free, so that when a position opened up, he would be ahead of the game. The owner was so impressed, he hired Rob on the spot. He was hired by Rocky Mountain Airways in 1989, a company contracted to Continental Express where he received a Continental Airlines seniority number, a very important milestone in the airline industry. In 1994, Rob was hired onto Continental Airlines as a Flight Engineer on the B727. His career was not linear. However, he proved highly adept at navigating the complexities of a career with the airlines. Later, Rob took a leave of absence from Continental, got picked up by UPS, hated the schedule, quit, then got hired by Delta Airlines in the mid-90s. He eventually realized this schedule would not work for him either—long trips and commuting were keeping him from his family, which Rob could not accept. He left Delta and returned to Continental in the late 90s where he flew as a First Officer and then a Captain on the B737 for most of his career. He stayed at Continental, now United, keeping his job through catastrophic industry setbacks like 9/11 and the 2008 Recession. Rob took great pride in his career and ability as an aviator. He always stood a bit higher, shoulders back and chest out, when he left the house for the airport in uniform. He was confident but humble in his abilities. He once said, “I am good at what I do but lots of others are better, even if in one different way. And so, I know I have to keep trying. And that's part of the fun.” Early in his career, while Pam was visiting home in Billings (with her current boyfriend no less), Rob showed up like a whirlwind early in the morning, knocked on her door, and asked her to breakfast where he brazenly proposed marriage. Pam, shocked and maybe a bit more impressed than she'd admit, reminded Rob that her boyfriend was back at her dad's house to which Rob tactfully replied, “dump him.'' And that's what she did. A while later, after some time dating and figuring out their careers, Rob proposed in the airport terminal at the end of one of his trips. He handed each passenger a rose and instructed them each to walk out, find the “beautiful blonde in the terminal,” and hand their flower to her. They all did. Rob was the last man to come off the jet bridge, and he brought her a ring. The two were married at Faith Evangelical Church in Billings on August 24, 1991. With the woman of his dreams by his side, Rob's career took the couple to Denver, where their eldest son, Steele, was born. They moved to Houston soon after, where they had Riley and Piper. They raised all three children in Houston, where Rob and Pam became staple members of the community. They developed many meaningful friendships there that endure to this day. In 2015, after 16 years in Houston, Rob and Pam decided to return to their home state. They moved back to Billings and quickly became deeply woven into the fabric of the community. Rob and Pam were active members of Harvest Church and the Townsend Leadership Program. Rob also became deeply invested in Mission Aviation, a flight school that he launched with his sons Steele and Riley. They taught many Billings natives how to fly and introduced them to the family's passion for aviation. No matter where Rob lived or what he was doing, he looked for opportunities to share his faith. Rob committed himself to Christ in his early teens. His unwavering faith was the cornerstone of his life, and he shared it freely with anyone who would listen. He had a commitment to personal growth that enabled him to connect with friends in the corners of their hearts, to see and comfort the hurt and heartache that we all endure, and to leave those he encountered with a sense of being known and understood. He was quick to ask and to listen. He had a clever, witty and wicked sense of humor. He was intelligent and larger than life. Aspects of his personality were influenced heavily by John Wayne and characters in Louis Lamour novels. He was an outlaw intellectual with some of the strongest opinions a man can have, and he wasn't afraid to share them. He loved a good argument, and never ran from a fight. He adored his dog, Nala, who followed Rob everywhere he went. From his mother, Rob inherited a great gift for storytelling, and from his father, an unparalleled gift for debate. No one wanted to go up against Rob if he was on the opposite side of an issue. He was truly a force to be reckoned with. Of all Rob's attributes, perhaps his greatest was his devotion to his family. Pam, Steele, Riley, and Piper were his whole world. There was nothing he wouldn't do for his children. Rob was a champion for them, unwavering in his love, and was immensely proud of the young adults they had become. Rob is preceded in death by his mother Zena Wright Ensign, stepfather Ralph Wright, grandparents Almon and Florence Walborn and Bob and Dell Stephens. He is survived by his three children, Steele (Megan), Riley and Piper, his father Rob Stephens Sr., his sister Darcy LaBeau and her three children Peyton, Ben and Olivia, his sister Zena Dell Lowe, his father-in-law Bill Paterson, his brothers-in-law Rob (Kristi) Paterson and their three children Gabby, Parker, and Dakota, Eric Paterson and his daughter Danika, and his stepbrother Sean (Svenja) Wright and their two sons Evan and Ewan. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in remembrance of Rob and Pam Stephens to The Phoenix Society for Burn Survivors. The Team Riley Fundraising page can be accessed here: https://give.phoenix-society.org/TeamRiley A celebration of life will take place Saturday, October 9th at Harvest Church in Billings, MT at 2pm MDT, and livestreamed to Faithbridge Church in Spring, TX at 3pm CDT. Reception to follow at Gary Blain's hangar 6309 Jellison Rd, Billings, MT. Bring your best story.