Robert attended Syracuse University, where he was a brother of the New York Alpha chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon (SigEp) Fraternity, before joining the U.S. Army Air Corps. Robert passed away in 2012, and according to his obituary he "flew over 35 missions in Europe, and was the navigator on the airplane "Snooper", a B-24 known as a Liberator. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement in aerial combat. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the Air Force Reserves in 1982."