Robert “Bob” Hewitt (Missoula ’56)
Posted: November 01, 2025
Bob passed away on October 24, 2025. He was born February 5, 1936, in Little Rock, AR, and grew up in Memphis, TN. He graduated from Central HS in 1954.
He attended Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis), receiving a BS in biology.
Bob financed much of his schooling by working as a smokejumper. He rookied out of Missoula in 1956, going on to jump the 1957 and 1958 fire seasons as well.
In December 1961, he graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry. His first experience in the field was through the US Public Health Service. Bob received assignments in the Division of Indian Health in Pueblo, NM, and the US Coast Guard in Ketchikan and Juneau, AK.
He returned to Memphis in 1962 and established a private dental practice, maintaining it until his retirement in 2001. For decades, Dr. Bob Hewitt served as one of Memphis’s most respected and liked dentists.
In retirement, Bob served as a clinical consultant and teacher. As an associate professor at the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry, he shaped future generations of dentists.
Bob was a respected member of several professional organizations, including the American Academy of Gold Foil Operators, Omicron Kappa Upsilon, and the Richard Doggett Dean Society. He was also a fellow of the American College of Dentists.
His love for nature, kindled during his smokejumper days, was expressed through his hobbies, which included gardening, fishing, running, backpacking, and camping. In later years, he volunteered with the USFS, contributing to trail-reconstruction projects.
Bob was married for 60 years to Elizabeth Runyan Hewitt. Together they had a daughter, Paige, and a son, Robert. Besides his immediate family, he also left behind four grandsons and three great grandchildren.
He is buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in Memphis.
