Robert Gary Freelin

Robert Gary Freelin, 65, of Colonial Heights, VA, died September 12, 2019 after a hard-fought battle with cancer. Born in San Diego, CA, he was a longtime resident of Virginia; he was the son of the late Joseph Raymond and Helen Amanda Christiansen Freelin. He was a loving and caring son, brother, uncle and friend.
Gary graduated from Virginia Tech in 1981 with a BS in Chemistry, and worked for 3 years as a Virginia Tech Undergraduate Research Associate; he was employed by 3M in MN; Thoratec Labs and Landec Corporation in CA; and eventually retired in Virginia after 25 years at Evonik Industries (formerly Goldschmidt Chemical Corporation) as their Release Coatings Technical Group Manager. He was a well-respected chemist and authority in the polymers and coatings industry, and traveled to customer facilities on nearly every continent to advise, setup or fine-tune their release coating process. Gary and his team also invented new uses for the silicones, which resulted in several Patents for Evonik. Gary’s contributions to the polymer industry included many technical publications, research, training protocols, and patents.
Gary was a talented photographer who volunteered to take photos at many of Evonik’s annual holiday parties; as well as family and friends’ events; several photos were produced in an Ensco, Inc. calendar, and in Evonik’s trade brochures. He was an outdoorsman and enjoyed hunting, target shooting; and promoted gun safety and education. He volunteered as a 5th Grade Math Mentor at Dupont Elementary School in Hopewell, VA for 5 years. Gary enjoyed cooking and was very talented and creative. He loved sharing his creations with friends, neighbors and family. More than anything, he loved his little rescue dogs, Missy and Maggie; he actively supported rescue dog causes.
Gary is survived by his sisters, Judith Bassett, of West Chester, PA; Christine Freelin (Joe Gigantelli), of Reno, NV; and Mary Moore (Andy), of Fairfax, VA; as well as several nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be conducted at 3:00pm Saturday, November 2, 2019 at the Chester Chapel of J.T. Morriss & Son Funeral Home. The family will receive friends after service at the funeral home. The family would like to express appreciation to Crater Community Hospice for their outstanding care and devotion to Gary during his illness.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Crater Community Hospice, 3916 S. Crater Road, Petersburg, VA 23806 , www.cratercommunityhospice.org .
or Senior Dog Sanctuary, 8336 WB & A Road, Severn, MD 21144, www.seniordogsanctuary.com .
Condolences may be registered at www.jtmorriss.com .