Osterville Men's Club

The Osterville Men’s Club Robert Grunewald Good Guy Award is bestowed upon a member of the club who has helped to make our community a better place through volunteer efforts in civic, religious, or humanitarian activities. This prestigious award is not to be taken lightly as it is given by one’s fellow club members in recognition of the recipient’s accomplishments.

However, who was Robert Grunewald?

Bob Grunwald was born in 1919 in Amsterdam, New York. He graduated in 1940 from the General Electric Apprenticeship Program in Schenectady, New York. This program was organized in 1901 at the Schenectady Works of the General Electric Company to prepare boys for profitable careers of industrial usefulness. It began with a systematized training in the various uses of machine tools. Later night classroom work was added, which was subsequently changed to day classes. Upon graduation, he enrolled at Purdue University from which he graduated with Distinction with a B.S. in mechanical engineering. At Purdue, he was elected to Pi Tau Sigma Engineering Honorary and was president of the student co-op housing association.  

In 1942 he married Agnes Boice Grunewald.  

After World War II, he was recruited for the Advanced Manufacturing Program at General Electric and subsequently held positions of increased manufacturing responsibility at the Lynn, Massachusetts, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Cincinnati, Ohio and Schenectady, New York plants. He devoted his career to General Electric and retired as the general manager of the Engineering Cast Products Department in 1980.

Bob’s engineering background was preeminent in his life and he was a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers, the General Electric representative to the Aircraft Industries Association and was a trustee of the National Foundry Education Foundation. Upon his retirement in 1980, the Grunwald’s moved to Cape Cod where Bob became a real estate agent. He seemed to be as busy in retirement as when he had a full-time career. He became a member of the Osterville Men's Club, serving as a member of the golf committee, chairman of luncheon arrangements, vice president and president. He also served as a trustee of the Osterville Free Library. At the Osterville Methodist Church, he was a member of the Lend-A-Hand Group, the Miracle Kitchen Group and a trustee.  He was a volunteer tutor at Barnstable High and the Grade #5 School and delivered Meals-On-Wheels. For the Cape Cod chapter of the American Red Cross, he served for 22 years as volunteer driver to Boston medical facilities, as motor service chairman, as treasurer and as board chairman. He also was a member of the Wianno Club and the Mariners Masonic Lodge in Cotuit.

In addition to receiving the “Good Guy Award” from the Osterville Men’s Club he also received recognition by the National American Red Cross which honored him as the National Fund Raiser of the Year in 1995 and the Hyannis Rotary which bestowed upon him a Harris Fellow award in recognition of his volunteer activities.