Air Force officer, financial consultant
Robert Palmer Harlow, 71, a career Air Force officer and, later, a financial consultant, died June 15 at the Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer. He had lived in Harvard until moving to West Palm Beach, Florida, in 2001.
Mr. Harlow was born in Somerville December 29, 1935, son of Frank and Alice Jenks Harlow. He grew up in Orange, Connecticut, and graduated in 1953 from Hillhouse High School in New Haven. He received a bachelor of science degree in engineering from the Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, and then joined the Air Force in 1958, retiring with the rank of major in 1978. While in the military, he earned his master’s degree in business administration from the University of Utah and later taught as a professor at Salem State College for 10 years. After moving to Westford he created Westford Associates, where, as a financial consultant, he dealt with real estate and taxation.
Robert Harlow was an enthusiastic sailor and owned a 27-foot Vancouver sailboat for more than nine years. He liked to play cards, especially bridge and cribbage, and was an avid reader.
His survivors include his son, Robert Bradford Harlow of Ladera Ranch, California; his brother, Jonathan Webster Harlow of Milford, Connecticut; two sisters, Carryl Carter Harlow Hardwick of Green Valley, Arizona, and Natalie Harlow Maynard of Rutland; three nephews; and eight nieces.
A graveside service will be held at Oak Grove Cemetery in Medford Wednesday, June 20, at 11 a.m. Instead of flowers, contributions may be made in Robert Harlow’s memory to the Lance Armstrong Foundation, National Mail Processing Center, P.O. Box 6003, Albert Lea, MN 56007-6603.
