Leonidas H. Roberts

Leonidas H. "Leon" Roberts, World War II veteran and retired university professor, died Wednesday, August 5, 2015 in Gainesville, Fla. He was born February 27, 1921, near the village of Garards Fort to Warren H. and Celeste G. Roberts. During his early college years, Mr. Roberts participated in two government sponsored flight training programs covering primary and aerobatic maneuvers, dutifully joining the U.S. Navy in July 1941 where he had additional, rigorous military flight instructor training. For his wartime service, he received many campaign medals and awards including the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal and Navy Commendation Medal. He was a postwar commanding officer of Gainesville's Naval Reserve Research Company, 6-4, he retired with the rank of commander. Postwar academic life included degrees from Waynesburg College, West Virginia University and University of Florida, all with an emphasis in mathematics. Dr. Roberts joined the University of Florida faculty in 1949 as an instructor in the comprehensive physical sciences, a position with flexibility for concurrent participation in other academic disciplines. With the eventual establishment of the university's department of astronomy and his simultaneous appointment as a joint faculty member, Dr. Roberts acquired a very diverse teaching agenda over the years with options from physical science and astronomy courses, including celestial navigation, observatory sessions and planetarium lectures. After 40 years of service to the University of Florida, he retired as professor emeritus of physical sciences and astronomy. Immediate survivors include a son, David H. Roberts; granddaughter Paige Baker; and sister Virginia Glidden of Greene County. Deceased are his loving wife of 70 years, Mary Fabisinski Roberts, and daughter Claudia Leslie Roberts Baker. Mr. Roberts was a longtime member of the BarberGator chorus, a founding member of Decrepit Birdmen and a 65-year member of First United Methodist Church in Gainesville. Arrangements are entrusted to Milam Funeral and Cremation Services, 311 South Main Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, 352-376-5361, or at www.milamfh.com.