Robert Ellis Bergmann

Robert Ellis Bergmann - lovingly called Bob by his friends and neighbors – passed away suddenly but peacefully at his home in Connecticut on July 24, 2025. His wife Gloria (Hetensmith) was with him. Bob most recently split his time between family homes in
Connecticut and Chatham.
Bob was born May 14, 1943 in West Springfield, Massachusetts to John and Dorothy (Tudor) Bergmann,  and his adventurous love of life took him from there to literally around the world. Whether working, traveling, or just living in the moment, his generous spirit and infectious laughter defined him and pulled others into his orbit.
  As a young man, music led him on many adventures. He often traveled to the famed and historic Blue Note jazz club in New York City. He and his friend Rudy road-tripped to the Newport Folk Festival – years later they still laughed about sleeping on the beach there. He even headed
up to Montreal for Expo ‘67, the World’s Fair.
But his world travels really accelerated when he was sent to “rescue” his son John in Egypt, where his son was visiting a friend who was doing a dig at the base of the pyramids. The “rescue” quickly turned into a father-son travel adventure that set the pattern for a lifetime of family travel expeditions. He and his family visited 6 of the 7 continents, including wide-ranging expeditions to New Orleans, Easter Island, Machu Picchu, the Galapagos, Patagonia, Croatia, Cappadocia, and Australia as well as safaris in Botswana and Zimbabwe, even scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef. Bob’s favorite movies were about another world traveler, Indiana Jones – and one of his journeys even
took them on donkey-back to the ancient city of Petra, in Jordan, just like Indy.
He also famously loved, and owned, many (too many?) cars. Once while visiting the west coast, he spotted a zippy convertible for sale and he and his son spontaneously purchased it and drove it cross country back home. Bob was like that, he had a knack for spotting and grabbing
onto opportunities, and in the process always lived life to its fullest. And he was never happier than when sharing those moments with family.
That same instinct served Bob well in business too. Always the entrepreneur at heart, Bob began specializing in sound sales eventually holding the top sales spot for Sony USA. He later went on to a sales career at Pitney Bowes.  In his spare time, he renovated homes across Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. As in everything he did, family played a key role here too. He brought them into every part of the process teaching them how to spot and renovate properties, and working together they built the business and unforgettable memories along the way.
He loved Chatham and the family’s Cape Cod home. There he would relax and soak up life, swimming, walking beaches and kayaking in Pleasant Bay. One of his special joys was a bike ride ... with ice cream stops along the way.  He always enjoyed the pleasures of grilling outside, fresh fish from the fish pier, or a decadent meal at the Impudent Oyster.
He is survived by his wife Gloria, children Kyle, John, and Ann, and many nieces and nephews, and his brother Lawrence. He was predeceased by his parents.
Visiting hours will take place from 2:00PM-6:00PM, Sunday August 3, 2025 at Forastiere Smith Funeral & Cremation, 220 North Main Street, East Longmeadow. Private burial.
In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Preservation Hall in New Orleans and/or the Shriner’s Hospital in Springfield. https://www.preshallfoundation.org/
https://www.shrinerschildrens.org/en/locations/new-england