WILMINGTON — Robert Knox LaMar, 79, passed away very peacefully on April 11, 2026, in Wilmington, North Carolina, after a two-year battle with cancer. He had resided in Wilmington for the last year and a half of his life to be closer to his son, grandsons, and daughter-in-law.
Robert was born on March 15, 1947, in Burlington, North Carolina, to Knox and Helen LaMar. He was born, raised, and spent nearly his entire life in Burlington before moving to Wilmington in 2024. He graduated from Williams High School in Burlington and later earned his bachelor’s degree from Elon College.
Robert served his country in the United States Army during the Vietnam War as a Specialist Five combat medic, providing battlefield trauma care and stabilization. For his service, he was awarded the Army Commendation Medal and the Purple Heart.
Earlier in life, Robert enjoyed working on heavy equipment with his wife’s family (Blackwell), and he often spoke fondly of those years and of the many in-laws who became such an important part of his life. After college, he began a long career in the furniture industry, primarily in institutional furniture sales, design, and the management of large-scale installations. He retired at age 66 after finishing his career at Learning Environments, Inc. in Liberty, North Carolina, where he had many friends.
Robert was kind, funny, engaging, and remarkably even-tempered. Those closest to him rarely, if ever, saw him angry. He was extremely hardworking, mechanically gifted, and meticulous – the kind of man who could fix almost anything and believed deeply in doing things the right way. One of his favorite sayings was, “If you aren’t going to do it right, then just don’t do it at all.”
He had a lifelong love of cars, first developed while working at a local garage in high school. His cars were always spotless, carefully maintained, and in perfect working order. In his late 30s, he became an avid fisherman and deer hunter and loved spending as much time as he could in the eastern part of the state.
In retirement, Robert was able to enjoy golf more often and treasured the friendships, regular rounds, and golf trips he shared with a close group of golfing buddies. As he grew older, some of his happiest moments were quieter ones, sitting on the back porch at his son’s house with family or neighbors that happened to stop by or going out to local restaurants to share a good burger, stories, and plenty of laughter.
Robert was preceded in death by his beloved wife of more than 56 years, Patrice Blackwell LaMar; his son, Connelly Blake LaMar; and his parents, Knox and Helen LaMar.
He is survived by his son, Heston LaMar, and his wife, Savana LaMar; his grandsons, Knox and Stanton LaMar; his sister, Nancy Anderson, and her husband, Zollie Neil Anderson, Jr.; as well as his brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Kyle and Joyce Braxton.
A memorial service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 13, in the Mausoleum Chapel at Alamance Memorial Park, 4039 S. Church St., Burlington, NC 27215. The family will receive friends at a gathering on site following the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Zimmer Cancer Institute through the New Hanover Regional Medical Center Foundation in Wilmington, North Carolina.
