Obituary of Robert Gronbach

Robert Charles Gronbach, 83, of Glastonbury, died Friday August 12, 2011 at St. Mary's Home in West Hartford. He was born May 18, 1928 in Brooklyn, NY, son of the late Charles H. and Martha (Lenzing) Gronbach. He graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School and from C.C.N.Y. with a BS and MA in Psychology. After having held Human Resource positions with IBM, the US Army and TWA, he and his wife Cynthia moved to Connecticut in 1958 and he joined Hartford Hospital where he was employed for 38 years as Vice President of Human Resources until he retired in 1996. He was founding member, president and honorary member of the following organizations; The Medical Center Employee Relations Association, the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration and the Connecticut Hospital Human Resource Association. During his career he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Hospital Association, the Immediate Medical Care Center, The Hartford YMCA, Health Direct, the American Red Cross and Duncaster. In the 1960's there was not in existence in the Hartford area a graduate level Health Care Management program. Mr. Gronbach worked with the Hartford Graduate Center to start a Health Care Management Master's degree program and taught courses as an Adjunct Professor in the evening program for many years and assisted as Curriculum Chairman in the early stages. In 1975 he received the Literature award from the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration. He has authored articles which have appeared in professional journals in England, Sweden, India, as well as in the United States. He had also raised and shown Weimaraners which culminated in his dog Champion Gronbach's Aladdin winning the Sporting group at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in Madison Square Garden in 1965. Later on he was also a dog show judge. He is survived by his wife Cynthia (Grant) Gronbach of Glastonbury and his son Garth Gronbach of Glastonbury. Funeral service will be held Tuesday August 16 at 11am in the Mulryan Funeral Home, 725 Hebron Ave., Glastonbury. Burial will be private. Friends may call at the funeral home TODAY from 6-8pm. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Memorial Fund at Hartford Hospital, c/o Fund Development Office, 80 Seymour Street, P.O. Box 5037, Hartford, CT. 06102-5037. To share a memory please visit www.mulryanfh.com.