Robert Franklin Proffitt

Robert Franklin Proffitt, 89, went home to be with the Lord on December 31, 2023, at the CarePartners Solace Hospice Center in Asheville, NC.

He was born on May 14, 1934, in Yancey County, NC, to David Dewitt Proffitt and Lola Whittemore Proffitt, who preceded him in death. He was the husband of Judy Ann Todd Proffitt and they were married for 62 years. He was preceded in death by his brother, James Milton Proffitt.

Robert lived his entire adult life in Asheville. He served his country in the U.S. Army in 1957-58. He retired from the NC Department of Motor Vehicles in 1997 after 23 years spent weighing 18-wheelers to catch overweight trucks traveling the state’s highways.

Born in the Great Depression, Robert grew up in a valley that runs along Possum Trot Creek in Yancey County. As a boy, he roamed the steep hills and beautiful valley. He chased his father’s cows from the hilltops down to the barn and hoed endless rows of corn on the farm. He was lulled to sleep on summer nights by the creek fifty feet outside his open window, a memory he carried with him throughout his life.

Robert met Judy in Asheville when they were introduced on a blind date by close friends, and they realized they were meant for each other. After Judy moved to Chicago, Robert soon called her long-distance and asked her to return home – and she agreed.

Robert loved to bowl and was on a bowling league for many years with Judy. Robert was a good bowler and sometimes chastised Judy if she was laughing and talking too much instead of focusing enough on the ball’s trajectory. He liked going on camping trips with family and friends. He enjoyed gospel singings held under big outdoor tents in the summertime. He loved gardening and kept Judy and his children busy each summer stringing half-runner beans to can, digging up potatoes to store and shucking corn to freeze for the winter. He loved apple sauce made from June apples picked from a tree behind his childhood home and trees he planted in his own yard.

Robert was always steady and trustworthy, even as a young man. As a high schooler, he drove a school bus on narrow dirt roads surrounding the Bald Creek community. He was a wise and thrifty man, and a wonderful provider for his family. He was kind and generous to everyone he encountered. He was a staunch supporter of the church he and his family attended for many years, Trinity Baptist Church in West Asheville, and also Oakley Baptist Church that he and Judy attended for the last 18 years.

Surviving are his son, David Proffitt and wife Joan of Columbia, SC, and his daughter, Sheila Alewine and husband Todd of Hendersonville; four grandchildren: Lindsey Limerick and her husband, Jordan; Lauren Dickson and her husband, Zach; and Sydney Proffitt and Andrew Proffitt; five great-grandchildren: Andie, Jack, Hayden, Cam and Carter; a sister, Betty Jean Fox; and two nephews, Darrell Fox and James Proffitt.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, January 4, at Oakley Baptist Church, 70 Fairview Ave, Asheville. The family will receive friends at 10 a.m. before the service. Pastor John Alexander and retired pastor Thomas Pierce, along with Robert’s son-in-law, Rev. Todd Alewine, will officiate. A family graveside service will be held at a later date at the Western Carolina State Veterans Cemetery in Black Mountain.

The family would like to express special thanks to neighbors Steve and Ramona Wichelo and

Karen Craft for their many acts of kindness and labors of love that made the last years of

Robert’s life much easier.

Anders-Rice Funeral Home is honored to serve the Proffitt family.