Community Remembers Local Hero Bob Neely

Last Christmas Eve, Springfield lost a dedicated member of the community, Robert “Bob” Neely, former activities director at Don Guanella Village (DGV).  

But "member of the community" doesn’t even begin to describe who Neely was, how many lives he touched and whom he enlightened.

I never had the honor meet Bob Neely, which is undoubtedly my loss. However, even from a stranger’s point-of-view it was impossible to miss the impact he had on so many lives after attending the dedication of “Robert Neely Memorial Field” at Don Guanella Village Tuesday night.  

“He was bigger than life,” affirmed Bob's sister, Joann Neely-Jones.

Yes, he certainly was. Bob dedicated his time and devotion to establishing connections within the tri-state area for the residents of Don Guanella Village, a school for teenage boys with developmental disabilities and for developmentally-disabled adult men.

“He certainty impacted the lives of the boys here, with his extreme level of dedication care and commitment,” commented Father Dennis Weber.

“The amount of community connections he made through the years was really beneficial, very helpful for us in order to give our residents some community interaction and also expose the community to persons with developmental disabilities.”

Neely was a valuable part of creating the Challenger Field at DGV, which has now been named in his memory.  The Challenger Softball League allows all to have the chance to participate, despite mental or physical ability.

“This is his blood, sweat, and tears here,” shared Bob’s lifelong friend, Joe Masticola.  “He put himself into this for at least 25 years.”

Bob established community connections with schools and universities and got them involved with DGV residents.

“Bob established partnerships with many college universities, especially basketball teams.  There was Villanova with Jay Wright and Temple’s Fran Dunphy, when he was previously at Penn,” said Father Weber.  “Bob took residents to attend practices or sometimes the team would come visit us.”           

The dedication began with a traditional singing of "God Bless America" and ended with a round of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." It was short and sweet, full of prayer and kind words about a man who clearly loved life and has left behind a lasting legacy.

To be in the presence of those whose lives he made an impression on was an inspiring experience.  To say "He will be missed," would be an understatement.

Neely's dedication, commitment and hard work will create a lasting memory in the community as Springfield’s own local hero.