Robert “Bob” Dick and his wife, Joann, pose for a photograph. Dick died on Jan. 17 at age 94. Courtesy photo

When George Robert “Bob” Dick began working with his father in 1958, it was a completely different world. Dick’s Pharmacy, owned by his dad, Gerald Dick, at its original location on Fourth Street in Altoona, had the wooden fixtures and marble soda fountain of a bygone era.

When Bob Dick became the sole owner of the business in 1974, he began modernizing the business, offering home care medical supplies such as wheelchairs, ostomy supplies and oxygen, among others.

Described as a good teacher and leader, the patriarch of the Dick family died at the age of 94 on Jan. 17, leaving behind a legacy of tireless innovation and dedication that can be seen in the eight Dick’s Homecare locations spread across the region, and felt in the countless lives he touched, his family said.

Before she went to work at Dick’s in 1982, Julie (Dick) Lytle knew her father as a caring man and devoted husband to her mother, Joann. Although he was often busy managing the business, he made a point to set aside time for family, Lytle said.

And as his family grew, so did the business.

Dick’s expanded to Claysburg in 1980, with that store managed by Dick’s oldest son, Robert, a graduate fresh out of Duquesne University’s pharmacy program.

Dick’s second oldest, Randy, joined the business in 1981 after receiving his pharmacy degree from Temple University.

Julie and her husband, Zachary Lytle, followed suit in 1982.

Lytle credits her father for creating a welcoming environment for employees.

“We have employees who stayed here for years,” Lytle said. “He was a very good teacher, leader to everyone here.”

In the following decade, the business expanded throughout the region, earning Dick several accolades, including recognition as the 1993 Western Pa. Healthcare Entrepreneur of the Year by the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association, and induction into the Blair County Chamber of Commerce Hall of Fame in 2008.

Talking to the Mirror in 2008, Dick credited his achievements to a simple business philosophy.

“What enabled us to grow was honesty and taking care of our customers and the Lord has helped us a lot … without him, we would not be successful,” Dick said during the interview.

Rick Banks, an Altoona native, has worked as a service technician at Dick’s Homecare for nearly 40 years and knew Dick’s management style well.

“Since I’ve been little I’ve been here, since I grew up right down the street, probably 10, 12 years old,” Banks said. “It’s a secure place.”

While Banks was a delivery driver for the company, he often volunteered to help Dick with house chores, walking his German shepherds or assisting him with lawn care.

“He would stand out on his porch and we would talk,” Banks said. “He was a good guy.”

While his time became increasingly full managing an eight-location business, Dick remained generous.

“He would stop and talk to you,” Banks said.

In the later years of his life, Dick stepped back from his daily pharmacy duties to focus on running the organization as a whole and to spend more time with his growing family.

His grandson, Caleb Lytle, began working at Dick’s in high school, running errands and doing odd jobs after school in the early 2000s. Now, Caleb Lytle is the warehouse manager and looks ready to continue the family business.

“I’ll be honest, I was here a lot because he was here a lot,” Caleb Lytle said. “I spent a lot of time with him as a kid.”

On Sundays, Dick would take time to treat the youngster to breakfast at Wissingers with his cousins. As he got older, Dick would take his grandchildren on beach trips.

“We always went on vacations with them,” Caleb Lytle said. “We all spent a lot of time together.”

While Dick would cross paths with the various generations of his family at work, these trips offered an opportunity for them to bond off-the-clock.

“This was probably 2007, we went on this fishing trip, on a charter out on the Gulf,” Caleb Lytle said, “and me, my dad and him, we went out on this charter and had a blast, it was awesome. … That’s definitely a memory that sticks out.”

After slowly winding down his involvement with the business for several years, Dick officially retired in 2019, following the sale of his remaining pharmacy locations and the consolidation of the company into the home care operation.

In January 2020, Dick’s wife, Joann, went to live at Homewood in Martinsburg, with Bob joining her one month later.

“He just couldn’t stand to be without her,” Julie Lytle said.

Although they were in different units, Dick would make a point to share meals with his wife of nearly 70 years, only reluctantly stopping due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When they were finally allowed to see each other in person again, Dick arranged a fancy “reunion dinner” to celebrate their time together. And when Joann died in late 2023, Bob followed her six months later.

They were “inseparable,” Julie Lytle said. “They had a very close relationship … they did everything together.”

Mirror Staff Writer Conner Goetz is at 814-946-7535.