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Robert Bruce Duncan, retired diplomat

November 8, 2022

Robert (Bob) Bruce Duncan died Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022, when his valiant fight against lung cancer ended. He was born Dec. 19, 1934, in Newark, N.J., son of the late Bertram Charles Duncan and Martha (Batson) Duncan.

Bob began life in Glen Ridge, N.J., and spent a tumultuous year in Michigan, after which he and his mother returned to East Orange, N.J. He graduated from East Orange High School in 1953 with honors. Bob attended Princeton University, where he was enrolled in the Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs. There, he became president of the debating club, joined the marching band, and was active in managing the Terrace eating club. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa. While a Princeton student, Bob met his future wife, Faith. They were married three years later.

After college, Bob spent two years in the army and was then accepted into the U.S. Foreign Service. Following two years at the State Department, he was assigned to the Arabic Language School in Tangier. Bob and Faith arrived there with a newborn baby and went on with a second child to Rabat, Morocco, where he served as an economic officer. Discovering this preferred area of expertise, Bob continued to serve in Algiers, Algeria.

Back in the states, Bob was selected to attend a year of studies at Harvard, where he attained a master’s degree. He then headed the economic section at the American Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and served as representative to the United Nations Economic Commission in Africa. A tour back in Washington, D.C., led to a year at National War College, followed by four years in Paris as head of the economics section, and later, three years as the third-ranking American diplomat at the embassy in Bangkok, Thailand.

Retirement took Bob to a home he had purchased in Dewey Beach. While there, he joined the Lions Club, volunteered as a French substitute teacher at Cape Henlopen High School, became an active member at Westminster Presbyterian Church, and for friends of the library, and best of all, led a class on foreign affairs at Southern Delaware Lifelong Learning, now OLLI.

An unfortunate fall injuring his knee convinced him that change was needed. Bob and Faith selected a cottage at The Moorings at Lewes for their final home, a place where he has been able to rest and relish the memories of a life well-lived and enjoyed.

Bob is survived by his devoted wife of 62 years, Faith S. Duncan; his daughter, Susan Duncan (Lance Beden); his son Robert R. Duncan (Joann); and his beloved granddaughter, Jamie.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m., Wednesday, Nov. 16, at Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, 16961 Kings Hwy., Lewes, where friends may visit beginning at 10 a.m. Burial will take place at noon, Thursday, Nov. 17,  at Kingston Presbyterian Cemetery, Kingston, N.J.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be given to Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra, P.O. Box 3381, Easton, MD 21601, midatlanticsymphony.org/donate-1.

Visit Bob’s Life Memorial webpage and sign his virtual guestbook at parsellfuneralhomes.com.

 

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