Robert ‘Bob’ DeNeve was born on February 8, 1943 in New York, New York. By the time he was a mere four years old, World War II had ended and his parents had the opportunity to explore the world. They both decided their first-born son would be best placed in the loving arms of his paternal grandparents who resided in Belgium. Little Bob was faced with the challenge of learning to speak Flemish overnight. He quickly absorbed the language with little effort. Upon his return to America, he had to learn English once again to enter and survive as a first grader.

He spent his youth in New England with his brother Julian in New England between Rehoboth, Massachusetts and East Greenwich, Rhode Island. The summers were spent with his maternal grandparents who lived in East Greenwich on Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. In 1959, the entire family was ready to settle in Florida and make it their place of residence. Bob drove his ‘38 Nash, leading his way to Boca Raton. Graduating from Seacrest High School in Delray Beach in 1962, he graduated from the University of Florida in 1966 with his B.S. degree in Forestry and his Masters in Entomology, along with his Doctorate in Plant Pathology. He was employed by Mallinckrodt Chemical Works in their Specialty Ag Department where he developed insecticides and fungicides including Truban and Bannot.

In 1970, Bob and his very best friend, Dennis Crowell, were inspired to start La Casa Verde Foliage Nursery in Boynton Beach. During this time, Bob developed Spathiphyllum DeNeve, Philodendron Angel Wing, and a Raphodopthra. He was active in the beginning of, and served officer positions in, the Palm Beach Wholesale Growers, the Florida Foliage Foundation and the Florida Foliage Association. Upon the sale of La Casa Verde to Tropical Ornamentals, Bob held a position as production manager and continued his much-loved work with research and development. As well as doing consulting work, he gave numerous lectures for ALCA and other associations.

In 1986, he took a position in Hawaii with Agratech. While working with Tom Hayes, the Bankruptcy Trustee, Bob started Hawaiian Phoenix and Foliage on the Big Island of Hawaii. He was also active with the Hawaii Association of Nurserymen (HAN) and was instrumental in moving the annual trade show to Hilo. The Hawaii Export Nursery Association (HENA) was then formed, and promoted the annual MID Pacific Horticultural Trade Show in Hilo. He has held many positions with HENA, including President.  Bob was honored with the prestigious Governor’s Exporter of the Year Award and was inducted into the MIDPAC Hall of Fame in Hawaii in 2005. Hawaiian Phoenix was the largest foliage plant seed producer in Hawaii, selling 90 to 100 thousand pounds a year.

In 2008, Bob aka ‘Kahuna’ retired to Ocala, Florida to be near his brother and children. He spent his retirement years working on cars like his Grand Nationals and Porsche while meeting new friends at local establishments like Gator Joe’s and Fox Crossing’s. Bob is survived by his younger brother Julian DeNeve (Grace) and three children, Bobby DeNeve (Sarah), Allison Castellano (Matthew), and Jennifer Prater (Patrick) and six grandchildren, Ashleigh, Courteney, Brianna, Sara, Alyssa, and Tyler. Arrangements for ‘A Celebration of Life’ service where everyone will raise a Budweiser is pending.