Robert Stanley Reis
1917-Sept. 22, 2008
Palo Alto, California
Robert Stanley Reis, a longtime resident of Atherton and Menlo Park before moving to the Hyatt Classic Residence, died Oct. 22 in Palo Alto. He was 91.
Mr. Reis was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. As a youth, he played in national amateur golf tournaments, as well as national intercollegiate tournaments, serving as captain of the University of Cincinnati golf team.
He earned a bachelor's degree and a MBA from Stanford University. During World War II, he earned an advanced degree in meteorology from New York University and served as a staff weather officer in the Army Air Force. He married Kato Mendelssohn in the Stanford University chapel in 1946.
In 1946, he and fellow Stanford Graduate School of Business alumnus, Robert Bush, purchased City Transfer and Storage Co. in San Francisco. After Mr. Bush moved on to other business pursuits, Mr. Reis began a partnership with Richie Smith, which lasted many years, say family members. City Transfer, a member of Allied Van Lines network, pioneered off-site storage of office records in the Bay Area. In the 1970s, Mr. Reis became chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Allied Van Lines. In 1980, he and his sons, Tom and John, and, later, Ron, refocused the company from transportation to records management and storage, changing the name to DataSafe.
During his career, Mr. Reis was president of the National Furniture Warehousemen's Association (1962), president of the San Francisco Better Business Bureau (1972), and on the boards of many civic organizations, including the Guardsmen, Rotary Club of San Francisco, the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco, the Lassen Park Foundation and the Sequoia Foundation.He was a member of the Family Club of San Francisco, the Bohemian Club, for which he served as chairman of the Grove Committee, the Menlo Circus Club, and the Menlo Country Club.
He was an expert bridge player, attaining the rank of Life Master, and an avid domino player, winning many championships, say family members. He also enjoyed spending time with his family at "Echo Springs," the family retreat in Northern California.
He is survived by his wife, Kato of Palo Alto; sons, Ron, Tom, Brian and John; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
Tags: veteran, business
