Col. (Ret.) Robert Ernest Spiller, 89, of Oakland, KY, died peacefully at home after a short illness on Saturday, January 13, 2018. Col. Spiller is survived by his wife Cora Jane Morningstar Spiller and four children: Jane of New Providence, NJ; Bob (Pam) of New Albany, IN; Nancy (Jerry) of Parkland, FL; and Helen (Paul) of Cape Town, South Africa; eight grandchildren, two great grandchildren and one on the way. He is preceded in death by his parents Ernest Clifford Spiller and Helen Lydia Whitaker Spiller. Col. Spiller was born in Philadelphia, PA on December 25, 1928. He came to Bowling Green to attend WKU, where he met his wife of 66 years, Bowling Green native Cora Jane Morningstar. Col. Spiller graduated from WKU in 1949 with a Bachelors and a Masters degree in history in 1950. He had an illustrious 30-year army career and fought in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. He served throughout the United States, France and Germany for many years. His final assignment was Chief of Staff of the Berlin Brigade, where he was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal. Col. Spiller returned to Bowling Green in 1980 where he obtained an agriculture degree from WKU. Upon graduation, he became the director of the WKU Agricultural Exposition Center. He was a member of Christ Episcopal Church, Bowling Green, and served as the organist at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Glasgow for 20 years. Together with Cora Jane, they donated their time, treasures, and talents to numerous organizations. He was an active member of the American Legion, VFW, Military Officers Association of America, Kentucky State President of The Retired Officers Association and for several years led the Veterans Day Parade. He was a volunteer to drive veterans from Bowling Green to Nashville for medical appointments, helped widows and family members weekly to obtain benefits from the military, and was the driving force to obtain the Bowling Green VA Nursing Home. He was a member of the Rotary Club where he was a Paul Harris Fellow, Boys and Girls Club (Chairing the campaign to build the current building), supported the Salvation Army and member of Fortnightly Club. He was a docent at the historic Riverview at Hobson Grove for over 22 years. Col. Spiller had many hobbies to include chair caning, china repairing, and rug hooking. Those who knew him knew he was always busy and always helping others. Col. Spiller and his wife received numerous humanitarian and philanthropic awards to include the prestigious Jefferson Award and, most recently, the South Central Kentuckian of the Year Award.
Visitation will be from 2-8 pm Thursday at the J.C. Kirby & Son LOVERS LANE Chapel; and from 11 am until 1 pm Friday at the Duncan Hines Chapel of the Christ Episcopal Church on State Street. Colonel Spiller will be laid to rest in Fairview Cemetery.
Expressions of sympathy may be made to the Boys & Girls Club of Bowling Green, or the Salvation Army of Bowling Green.
Photo and Obituary copied from J.C. Kirby and son funeral home.
I was saddened to hear of the passing of Colonel Spiller this weekend, that's how myself and anyone around me referred to him while he was director of the WKU L.D. Brown Agricultural Exposition Center. I was so blessed to have several mentors during my time at WKU and Colonel Spiller was definitely a mentor and leader. I don't care to reveal my age by stating that I was an agriculture student in the mid-1980's. What a wonderful time we had with the caring staff and administration. Colonel Spiller was an active part of that staff and worked with the students each day at the expo center, teaching and guiding along the way.
The expo center was and still is host to many agricultural events and activities. For large events such as the rodeo, the many student organizations worked the concessions stands for a percentage of the profits. It was not unusual to have members of Block & Bridle, the Dairy Club, the Horse Club, and AgEd Club all working together at these events and Colonel Spiller was always there, encouraging us and helping us each step of the way. He was a fixture at all events and it didn't matter how late they ran, he was there directing and making certain everything was taken care of correctly. I really don't recall him raising his voice about anything but I know he rarely had to tell anyone twice.
As a member of the livestock judging team, it was always fun to be at the expo center in the afternoons and have the time to play with the Colonel's Bassett Hounds. It's been too many years now for me to remember their names but they were a fixture at the center and could be found lounging in his office every day. They were very well behaved dogs and definitely knew the Colonel was their master.
One of my favorite Colonel Spiller stories involves one of the many meals prepared and served by our Block & Bridle Club for a large company. This was an extra special meal of steaks and all the trimmings, served in a room at the expo prepared with tablecloths, dinnerware, and centerpieces. As many of you know Block & Bridle has long prepared and served meals but most are of the paper plate variety.
There were probably 10 or 12 of us students that had worked all day preparing the room and the meal and as usual we made certain to have enough food prepared to have our own dinner but the company had several more people in attendance than planned, so we were left without a meal. Thankfully we had enough for the people at the conference but we were going to have to eat later. Colonel Spiller was not happy about this and he told us to clean up, he was going to call Cora, his wife, to meet us and we would go eat dinner.
When we were ready to leave the expo, Colonel Spiller told us to meet him at Rafferty's restaurant, one of the best restaurants in town at the time. We all drove there and I don't know about everyone else but I was sure that I was paying for my own meal. When we were seated, Colonel Spiller told the server that it was all on one bill and he was paying. He told us that we had all worked hard and thought we were getting a steak dinner and we were going to have a steak dinner. That was a most memorable evening and I will always remember Colonel Spiller's kindness in making sure that we had dinner and making it an event.
I know that this was not unusual for him, he was always helping, always leading, and he had everyone's respect along the way. He was a leader among leaders and I am so thankful for those wonderful years at WKU. He will truly be missed.
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