Robert F. “Rob” DeDominick passed away May 1st, 2023 in his home in Virginia Beach, Virginia.  He was 69 years old. He was born in Durham, North Carolina to the late Dominick R. “Nick” DeDominick and Helen Waddell DeDominick, and is survived by his daughter, Julianna C. DeDominick, and her mother, Jeanne DeDominick. Rob played trumpet in the Granby High School Band, where he graduated in 1972. When Norfolk’s Virginia Squires basketball team was founded and needed a pep band, Rob and Granby friends formed the Esquires to play through breaks and dance music for cheerleaders.

Robert was a man of many passions– he would go on to play in and lead dance bands, including “The Last of The Good Guys”, “Redymix”, “Soul Intent”, The Rhondels”, “The Original Rhondels”, and “Fast Forward” in Hampton Roads nightclubs, touring the east coast and the midwest. He would then go on to serve his country by joining the US Navy, completing Navy Boot Camp and attending the Armed Forces School of Music. Following an early graduation, he was assigned to the Navy Band Great Lakes, just north of Chicago, where he would go on to perform with the Navy Band, and other groups such as Manhattan Transfer and the Chicago Bears’ Cheerleaders, the HoneyBears.

Following his time in Chicago, he moved back to the Tidewater area, where he would remain for the rest of his Navy career. He taught at the School of Music at Little Creek Amphibious Base, first as a trumpet instructor, and later as a rehearsal instructor. After that, he was stationed at Fleet Support, a unit that supplied instruments for the Navy across the world, as an electronic instrument repairman. He would then go on to become head of Fleet Support, and later became the head of the rehearsal division as well, also serving as lead trumpet in the SOM Lab Band throughout his years at Little Creek. In his spare time, Rob also enjoyed producing musical bumpers to be used for commercials and voice-overs for radio, some of which were purchased and used in other countries. Close friends and fellow musicians would go on to describe him as sharp witted, funny, well-read, and a talented musician that touched so many lives. Senior Chief Musician Rob DeDominick retired from the Navy Dec. 10, 2007.

After retiring from the Navy, Rob enrolled at Old Dominion University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in December of 2015. He also taught jazz band at the Governor’s School for the Arts for many years, before retiring in 2020. Around that same time, Rob was diagnosed with cancer, a battle that he would fight for the next year. Thankfully, with the help of the doctors and staff of Memorial Sloan Kettering, he would become cancer-free and go on to enjoy retirement.

Rob’s recent hobbies included making clocks and wall sculptures in the googie art style. He was excited to be accepted to show his recent work at the upcoming Stockley Gardens Art Show in May. Before his passing, he had also been preparing to play with Vinnie Knight and the Jazz Riders as their trumpet player. Rob’s wry, offbeat humor, his wisdom, his fatherhood, and his devoted friendship will be sorely missed.

A Celebration of Rob’s life will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at Old Donation Episcopal Church 4449 N Witchduck Rd, Virginia Beach, VA 23455.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his honor to:

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center at www.mskcc.org,

Navy Musicians Association-The O.L. McMillan Scholarship Award Program is for young musician enrolled in, or accepted for enrollment in a 4-year college music degree program.

www.navymusicians.org

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)

www.namicoastalvirginia.org

The Citizens’ Committee to protect the elderly

P.O. Box 10100 Virginia Beach, VA 23450 757-518-5800

Please visit www.vacremationsociety.com to share memories and offer condolences