“I very often don’t agree with Bob, but that doesn’t make him wrong and me right. On the other hand, I place a high value on Bob as a Director. He is straight thinking, straight forward and invariably the devil’s advocate,” Leigh H Perkins, President: The Orvis Company Inc., 6th president of the national board of directors of RGS.
Some men are content with a simple life, quietly drifting along, fashioning nary a ripple. Conversely, there are men who take the helm, steering their course to a brighter tomorrow. These men are not seekers of fame but are driven by a quiet desire to influence change. Impacting lives, societies, and even nations along the way. Robert J Lytle hails from the latter group. He was an exemplary man with an aptitude for enhancement.
A native of Detroit, Michigan, born in 1919, he was proficient in many arenas. An aviator, educator, writer, publisher, business leader, devoted husband and father of 10, Robert wasn’t a man to sit on the sidelines and watch the world drift by.
Educated in Detroit’s parochial schools and Detroit Cass Technological High School, he later went on to graduate from the U.S. Army’s Command and General Staff College.
Serving in the Army Corps of Engineers from 1941 thru 1945 and ascending to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was awarded the Bronze Star for meritorious achievement and service, having played a vital role in facilitating the Allied forces’ ability to cross the Rhine River. A pivotal point in WWII, expediting the fall of Berlin.
As an author and advocate of educational reform, Robert’s articles appeared in the Detroit News, Detroit Free Press and the publication Educational Week. He also authored a book titled “Liberty Schools: A Parents Voucher Plan.”
In addition to his enthusiasm for education, he was at the forefront of the pre-manufactured homes industry in Michigan. Robert created and led Modern Homes Corp from 1946 through 1956 and The Panel Clip Company from 1956 to 1985.
Serving as the secretary/treasurer of the Prefabricated Home Manufacturing Institute he was also a holder of numerous patents applicable to the building industry. He authored many books about the subject. Even co-authoring “Book of Successful Fireplaces: How to Build, Decorate, and Use Them” with his wife Marie Jeanne Lytle.
Like all the other aspects of his life, he knew that you must be fully immersed and play an active role to be a force for change. A no-nonsense conservationist who promoted good sportsmanship and reasonable hunting regulations, he became an invaluable asset to the bird hunting community.
Being a permanent member of the Michigan Council of the Ruffed Grouse Society and elected to The Ruffed Grouse Society’s national board of directors in 1974, he served as the 5th president from 1976-1978. It was during this era that RGS went through a significant reorganization. For example, in 1978, RGS experienced its most successful fundraising venture with the launch of the Sportsman Banquet Program. Hosting five banquets in Pittsburg Pa., Reading Pa., Detroit Mi., Traverse City Mi., and Minneapolis/St. Paul Mn., RGS raised more funding than all the previous years combined.
“Lytle was instrumental in leading The Ruffed Grouse Society and turning it into a national conservation organization,” Dr. Samuel R. Pursgolve Jr., former Executive Director of RGS.
In the years after serving as president, he also held the positions of chairman of the budget committee and president of the forest wildlife foundation. A dedicated man who gave selflessly to the birds of the uplands, he brought a broad perspective to the group. Emphasizing the importance of collaborating with other like-minded conservation organizations, he could see the power in numbers.
An enthusiastic bird hunter who enjoyed hunting all corners of the mitten state. Robert used his much-loved English setters to band woodcock, being one of the pioneers in the early days of Michigan’s Woodcock Banding Program. With only a brief pause when he felt his setters weren’t up to the task, his banding career spanned 23 years with 167 woodcock banded.
The saying “birds of a feather flock together” couldn’t ring truer. Having a circle of friends that included the likes of Andy Ammann and Gordon Gullion is a testament to how deeply Robert J Lytle felt about the need to preserve these birds we’re so obsessed with.
When I read the words above, an image of a man who truly believed he could do anything he put his mind to starts to form. An image of a man who cared in a big way. However, there’s a story Robert’s son, Robert Jr., shared about pheasant hunting with his father as a young boy that paints an even more telling image than all the previous words ever could.
“Hunting with my dad was an educational process as he shared his knowledge of hunting with me as we went along. His favorite phrase was “Stay On-line”. Something I would use later in life as an infantry platoon leader. I learned to read terrain and make decisions based on it. I learned to memorize the woodline as a point of reference.
One day we came upon a cow pond and I remember that I was going to follow the dog around the pond. Nope, Dad decided to forge the pond, IN NOVEMBER! I learned to elevate my shotgun over my head as so not to get water in the barrel. When we got to the other side, he taught me about foot care and wringing out my socks, something else I would use later in life. He had a 28-gauge Remington that I got to carry, unloaded, during the hunts. At the end of the day, he would put something in a tree and let me shoot at it, that was a great feeling firing that gun.
As time went on, I moved away and joined the Army. I was sent to Vietnam as an infantry platoon leader and remember always shouting as we got off the helicopters in a hot LZ “’STAY ON-LINE’.
Just prior to going to Vietnam he took me to Drummond Island for a long weekend of hunting and family.
After returning we would always get together with my brothers in October for a few days of hunting around Traverse City,” Robert Lytle Jr.
Reading that one might come away with an impression of a heedless man. That sentiment could not be any farther from the truth. When I read that passage, I see a man who has experienced just how uncomfortable life can be. I see a man who turned the world around him into a classroom, weaving transformative lessons into everyday activities. I see a man preparing his most cherished asset, his child, for the unknowns of the future. Ultimately, I see a man who took no greater pleasure than to be surrounded by family.
Robert J Lytle passed on February 5th, 1994.
Father and grandfather, author and businessman – Robert J Lytle lived a life only a few others would know. Through his family and the continued work of organizations like RGS & AWS and the Michigan Woodcock Banding Program, the legacy he left us shall live on.
