Saturday, June 21, 2008
By Harold Gwin
The former machinist was hired by the YPD in 1999.
YOUNGSTOWN — Robert Deichman liked to serenade his daughters every night at bedtime with his version of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”
The girls are older now — Jenna is 15, and Julianna, 11 — but they would still get their songs at night, said Deichman’s wife, Lori.
First, she would sing to them, and then Robert would perform the familiar lullaby, she said.
The girls won’t get to hear him sing it anymore.
Detective Sgt. Deichman, 40, of the Youngstown Police Department, died early Thursday when the unmarked police car he was driving collided with a tractor-trailer on Salt Springs Road, not far from his home.
“He was on his way home,” Lori said, adding that she believes he had been playing darts, a favorite game, with friends before the 3:20 a.m. accident.
“When he went out with friends, they took their darts with them,” she said, noting that Robert was a 20-year member of the Youngstown Dart Association. He taught her and the girls how to play.
Police Chief Jimmy Hughes said Deichman was off duty but on call as part of the city’s accident investigation unit, and that’s why he was driving a city car.
“He was a fantastic father and husband,” Lori said.
The family of four played basketball and soccer, took bike rides and frequently engaged in wrestling matches and pillow fights, she said, adding that Julianna was the soccer player in the family.
“We’d have movie night and one night a week was game night. We’d sit and play games,” she said.
“He was a jokester. He liked to tease the kids and me. I’m short. I always asked for help getting stuff from the top cupboard and he teased me about that,” she said.
Jenna will be allowed to date when she turns 16 and he always teased her about how he would chase away her boyfriends.
“He was a very cautious driver,” Lori said, and he always talked about traffic and personal safety with the girls, especially when they were with him in the car.
Jenna recently had received her driving permit, and Robert was supposed to take her driving after work Thursday.
“He was supposed to be here to see the girls grow,” Lori said, her voice breaking. “How do I do this stuff without him?”
Lori grew up in Youngstown — both her father and mother were on the city police force. She met Robert in 1987 when both were working at Woolworth’s in Southern Park Mall.
“I was home for the holidays,” she recalled, adding that Robert was working a seasonal job.
They’ve been together since Dec. 7, 1988, and married on Dec. 7, 1996, she said.
He was working as a machinist at Buckeye Extrusion Tool & Die when he was hired by the police department in 1999.
He had talked about being a police officer and was thrilled when he got the opportunity, Lori said, adding, “We were thrilled for him. He loved his job. His chest blew up and his back straightened the first time he put on that uniform.”
“The last 20 years have been amazing,” she said.
Robert was born in Stamford, Conn., and was raised in Mexico, Mo., where he was active in 4-H and liked to build model rockets, winning awards with some of his designs, Lori said.
He came to Youngstown in 1985.
He was a member of St. Nicholas Church in Struthers, and, in addition to darts, he loved playing chess and Texas Hold’ em — “He was real good at it,” Lori said — and still liked making model rockets with his girls.
“We bought him a set of golf clubs about three years ago. He only made it to the golf course a couple of times. He was always working,” Lori said.
Ten- and 12-hour days weren’t uncommon and sometimes he worked even longer, she said, adding, “He was dedicated.”
Robert’s body was taken to the Cuyahoga County Coroner’s office for autopsy. Authorities said complete results, including toxicology reports, will take 10 to 12 weeks.
Arrangements are being handled by Schiavone Funeral Home on Belmont Avenue. Robert was the oldest of six siblings. He has a sister in Arizona and a brother in Philadelphia but the other three live in the area.
gwin@vindy.com