Robert Riesett

Robert Francis Riesett (Bob), age 87, passed away on Wednesday, February 26th, 2025, after a beautiful day of prayer with family. He lived in St Paul, MN, with his wife Karen.

Born in Baltimore, MD, in 1937 to Frank and Margaret Riesett, Bob was the oldest of their three children. At 13, he entered the seminary, which made his parents proud, and began his lifelong commitment to faith. The friendships he made at St. Charles remained constant until his final days.

While living and raising a family in Maryland, he earned degrees in Philosophy, Education, Counseling, and Aging. His calling to teaching led to a career in training and development- culminating in starting his own company, TrainingWorks Corporation. In 1990, he married Karen Shifflet. Together, he and Karen built Trainingworks into an international training and management consulting firm working from Panama to Paris and Saudi Arabia. They ran the business first from Maryland and later from St. Paul, MN.

As he looked to retirement, which he defined as "the third age," he developed a workshop called Retirement Transitions, which helped others make this transition well. In his own 3rd age, Bob volunteered at Lyngblomsten and served as Board Vice-President of his condo association.

Bob loved singing, being by any body of water, ocean or lake, oysters on the half shell, and Maryland lump crab cakes. He cherished dancing with his wife and writing Great Horned Owl stories for his daughters and grandchildren. Bob was an avid painter throughout his life - he painted what he saw, from Pemaquid Harbor to the lakes of Minnesota. If you are lucky enough to be gifted one of his paintings, know that every stroke was done with you in his heart.

He is survived by his beloved wife, Karen; his two daughters, Mary Kathryn Omberg (Rob) and Anne Renee Garvey, and Joel Shifflet, Jenn Shifflet (Katie Keyser); five grandchildren, Tucker Omberg (Bridget), William Omberg, Meghan Garvey, Katy Garvey (Jacob Godoy), Gideon Garvey, and two great-granddaughters, Julia and Allison. Bob is also survived by his sister, Mary Claire Torino, and predeceased by his parents and brother, Fred Riesett.

A celebration of Bob's life will be held later in the spring. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the organization of your choice. Bob lives on in his stories, his art, and most of all, his family's legacy.