Robert Williston of Oak Bluffs died July 19 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital after a progressive illness. He was 72.

He was born in Manhattan, N.Y., on May 25, 1936, and spent three years of his childhood in Puerto Rico before moving to the Vineyard. He was graduated from the Oak Bluffs High School in 1955 and soon after enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He was discharged in 1958 with a disability and returned to Oak Bluffs.

He was a jeweler for Balfour Company and later worked at the Martha’s Vineyard Shipyard. He worked for the fire department in Oak Bluffs and retired as the town shellfish warden.

He was an avid sportsman. He enjoyed fishing and everything dealing around the water, and hunting. Anything he did he did to perfection. He was a loyal friend to many people and was always there to lend a hand. People could count on him for anything.

He had a loyal and loving wife that stuck by him through thick and thin through their nearly 47 years of marriage. They worked hard together to obtain their lovely home on Dreamers Way and enjoyed being there to wait for the grandchildren to come by and visit. Words cannot express the love that he always had for his son Bobby and daughter Brenda. Of course, when the grandchildren started to arrive, he was beyond words of how he felt about them.

Survivors include his wife, Bertha Stafford Williston; his son, Robert T. Williston and his wife Lisa; his daughter, Brenda Williston; his grandchildren, Lauren Williston, Emilyanne Williston, Sarah Williston, Joseph Medeiros and Antone Silvia; a great-grandson, Joseph Medeiros 5th; his brothers, Ashley DePriest, Osby DePriest and Don DePriest; and several nephews.

He will be missed by many people his family knows of and by many people the family doesn’t know of because he made a friend of everyone he met. He will be missed especially by his dog, Buddie, who rode beside him in the car.

A graveside service will be held in the Oak Grove Cemetery, Pacific avenue, Oak Bluffs on Wednesday, July 30, at 11 a.m. The Rev. Robert Hensley will officiate. Military honors will be provided by the Veterans of Martha’s Vineyard.