Former Henderson Councilman Kesterson dies at 81

Jace Radke

Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2001 | 8:49 a.m.

As a city councilman, Robert Kesterson served as one of the early voices that helped shape Henderson. But his role as a family man defined his life.

Kesterson, a member of a pioneering Nevada family, died at the age of 81 Sunday in his Henderson home.

"He was a fine public servant, who helped build the foundation for the growth of Henderson," said Mike O'Callaghan, Las Vegas Sun executive editor and former governor. "Even when he was a public servant, his family was foremost in his mind."

Kesterson served on Henderson's second city council, from 1957 until 1961.

He was born Aug. 12, 1920, in Key West, Fla., and moved to Boulder City with his parents at age 11, his wife, former Mayor Lorna Kesterson, said.

"He came out because his father took a job working on Hoover Dam," Lorna Kesterson said.

When the Kestersons first arrived in Nevada, they lived in a tent encampment in Railroad Pass with the families of other dam workers before moving to the new Boulder City. Kesterson later served in the Navy during World War II, seeing combat in the Pacific, including Iwo Jima. During the Korean War he served in Naval intelligence in Hawaii.

"He was always very patriotic, and loved his country," Lorna Kesterson said. "He just wanted to do his part."

In 1953 the family moved to Henderson, where Robert Kesterson became active in the community. Kesterson, a civil engineer for the federal government, received the Boy Scouts' highest honor, a Silver Beaver, and spent many years working with youth.

"He was always helping young men and women, and he was always around," Henderson Councilman Andy Hafen said. "He was a very good athlete, and I think he even coached some of our baseball teams."

Kesterson was also active in youth programs with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and he loved the outdoors, Lorna Kesterson said.

Kesterson is survived by his wife; sons Robert and Roger of Mountain View, Wyo., and Donal and James of Henderson; nine grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the LDS chapel, 303 S. Cholla St., with services following. Burial will be at Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Boulder City.