Robert T. Dowling Obituary
Dr. Robert T. Dowling, 102, died on July 16, 2024 at Norwalk Hospital after a brief illness. Bob, also known as "Doc," was born in Norwalk on August 26, 1921 to Daniel Dowling and Helen Foley Dowling. When he was four, his family moved to Rowayton, where he resided until his death.
Bob graduated from Norwalk High School in 1939 and was drafted into World War II while attending the University of Connecticut. After the war, he graduated from Loyola University's school of dentistry in Chicago in 1947. He then served during the Korean War as a First Lieutenant in the Dental Corps in Fort Belvoir, VA, before opening his practice in Norwalk and later Darien.
He married Marjorie Nolan in 1962, and they raised their four children in Rowayton. They enjoyed playing tennis, skiing and boating, although not all his watercraft were entirely seaworthy.
Doc was perhaps best known for his athleticism. He was a competitive long-distance swimmer.
And played hockey and ran track in high school. He played football at UConn and in the army, where he also started boxing, winning the welterweight championship in a Golden Gloves tournament in 1944. He continued to box while in dental school, but mostly just when he needed the prize money.
He never stopped moving. Bob played hockey for the Home Oil Hockey Club into his 40s, the Inter-city Touch Football league into his 50s and competed in the National Senior Olympics in both track and swimming in his 70s, winning the silver medal in the 50-meter swim in 1997. He played tennis well into his mid 90s, still swam a bit at 101, and walked every day at 102.
A few of his many claims to fame: A case of childhood chickenpox forced him to miss the first talking movie picture. He saw Babe Ruth play his last game in New York. He was participating in an army exercise in the Midwest when President Franklin Roosevelt came to examine the wartime troops.
He is survived by his children Tim Dowling (Sophie), Melissa Dowling (Ianko), Lynn Dowling (Asia), and Chris Dowling (Chloe), and grandsons Barnaby, Johnnie and William Dowling of London and Thomas, John and George Dowling of Norwalk. He was predeceased by his wife Marjorie and his brother, John G. Dowling (Gladys).
Bob will be remembered for his kind demeanor and blue eyes, his great sense of humor and love of animals, particularly birds, as well as the many fillings—still in place—in the teeth of former patients. He never let fear or aging prevent him from doing the things he liked doing. In an article he wrote on aging for The Guardian in 2019, Bob said: "The point is not to worry about the fear too much: do as much as you can, and take advice from friends and relatives.". A memorial service will be held on Monday, July 22 at 5 p.m. at the Rowayton Community Center, 33 Highland Avenue, Norwalk.
