Robert Jaques

Robert Louis Jaques, he liked the nickname “Roberto,” came into this world on June 19, 1978. His birth was a difficult one, and his chances of surviving were very low. But Robert was a strong boy and with much help from the doctors at the Stanford Neonatal Intensive Care Center he was able to overcome the adversities and grew into the wonderful person that he was. Robert was a dear, dear person ... very loving and caring, respectful, helping others, courteous ... all of the things that a parent would hope for in their son. He brought incredible joy and happiness to his parents, Robert S. Jaques and Helen Jaye, and was loved by everyone who knew him. He had an inquisitive mind and was interested in a wide variety of things, always asking questions to learn more about them. Because of his father’s work as an engineer in the field of water treatment and recycling, he had an especially strong interest in construction projects and treatment facilities. His father took him on numerous trips to see and learn about these. One trip was at the earlyage of 2, in a backpack,at midnight on the beachin Seaside to inspect a treatment plant ocean outfall that was being repaired by marine divers. And another during construction of the Regional Treatment Plant in which a crane operator asked him if he’d like to come up into the cab with him and help lift a huge piece of equipment. He did, while his father was talking with the project superintendent and unaware of his son’s adventure. Robert loved to travel and took many, many trips with his parents including to Seattle, Chicago, New York City, Washington D.C., New Orleans, Halifax and Boston. On one of the trips to Chicago he got to meet the cast members of “Chicago Fire” – one of his favorite TV shows. He went with his parents to France at the age of 3, and again with his father as an adult. With his mother he went on many road trips throughout the western United States. Robert worked for a number of years for Hope Services in Monterey on a janitorial crew at the Naval Postgraduate School. Prior to that he worked as an office assistant, and later did computer e-waste dismantling. Robert had a great love for movies and music and had an extensive collection of CDs and DVDs. His middle name was in memory of Louis Armstrong, whose home he visited with his father in Queens, New York. Robert was one of the regulars at Red’s Doughnuts in downtown Monterey, often joining his father there for coffee, sometimes his favorite maple doughnut with peanuts, and the spirited conversations in what is like the “Cheers” of doughnut shops. He was pictured in the SFGATE newspaper’s August 23, 2022 edition in an article about Red’s. He also frequented Rosine’s on Alvarado and the Fisherman’s Grotto on the wharf. Robert suddenly and unexpectedly passed away at the UCSF Medical Center just before he was scheduled to be discharged following brain surgery in December. His mother and father were with him at his bedside. In spite of all of the medical adversities he faced in his life, he was always upbeat and positive and served as an inspiration to many people. He is survived by his brother, Evan; his father’s partner, Lynne Semeria; his mother’s husband, Ron Jaye; his uncles, Bill Davies, Xavier Alvarez and Don Jaques; his aunts, Anne Kelly and Barbra Alvarez; and his cousins, David, Alex, Andie, Kevin, Donald, Tracy and Suzanne. His parents will hold a gathering to honor Robert at a future date.