Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - A memorial service will be held for long-time Puerto Vallarta resident and freelance writer, Bob Cohen, on Wednesday, March 22 at 8:00 pm at the Alano Club on Basilio Badillo. Doors will open at around 7:45, right after the last 12-step meeting of the evening.

The service will be a celebration of Bob's life, so everyone is asked to bring some food for a pot-luck dinner, so we can share a meal along with memories of our dear friend. And, since the rehabilitation center in Ixtapa was close to Bob's heart, in lieu of flowers, a collection will be made during the gathering to be donated in Bob's name.

The Mystery Solved

After having been reported as missing in early February, friends began frantically looking for him - to no avail. Local authorities and investigators were employed, but they only searched within the state of Jalisco. Last week, a member of his family came to Vallarta only to learn that Bob was involved in a single car accident outside of Sayulita on January 29. He was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was transported to the morgue in Tepic, Nayarit. His body was cremated and taken home to the United States by Lorena Cohen on Sunday, March 12.

Remembering Bob Cohen

Bob moved to Puerto Vallarta just before his 50th birthday, deciding to opt for an early retirement rather than battle the hustle bustle and high cost of living in San Diego.

Bob found soon that living an American lifestyle around only English-speaking people got old pretty fast, and retirement was not all that it was cracked up to be, so he moved to a Spanish speaking Colonia and began to embrace the local culture.

It didn't take long for Bob to realize that lying on the beach or in a hammock with a Diet Coke in his hand could "get old" pretty quick. So, instead of swinging in his hammock, he began swinging a tennis racquet six days a week at the Canto Del Sol Tennis Club, where he spent many happy hours with not only his tennis coach, Jesus Martinez, but also with his good friend Martin Parra, the club's tennis director.

This led him to a new career as the first English-speaking sports writer in the Banderas Bay area. He began by writing a weekly sports column in the local newspaper, Vallarta Today. He later joined the Banderas News team, reporting not only on sports, but also covering local charity and community events.

In January 2008, as a result of his sports column on Banderas News, Bob received an email from a Northern California family asking if he knew of any schools or baseball teams that were in need of top quality baseball equipment, as they were going to bring the gear with them on their winter vacation.

Bob soon found himself in the position of meeting these concerned, caring people, picking up and storing the baseball equipment and then finding the appropriate people to donate it to, a task which Bob later described as "a trying, but pleasant and worthwhile experience."

It took almost a year, but in December 2008, Bob found Miguel Angel Vargas, a former Little League star from Puerto Vallarta. After an absence of Little League in Vallarta of 10 years, Vargas was in the process of starting a new Little League for kids that couldn't afford to play on existing baseball teams.

So Bob and Miguel Angel began the process of registering with the World Little League headquartered in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, acquiring State of Jalisco and local licenses, and finding sponsors for uniforms, umpire fees and other costs.

Finally, after a ten year absence of Little League in our city, the twelve team Puerto Vallarta Little League began their first day of official play at the Municipal Sports Stadium on February 28, 2009. And though the league only lasted for two seasons, it was one of the many wonderful things that Bob brought to our community.

Bob was among the small group of local recovered and recovering alcoholics who formed "Soberfest 2002" an annual convention whose name was later changed to "Sobriety under the Sun." Their 15th annual convention was held January 20-22, 2017, with more than 450 recovering alcoholics and other 12-Step recovery program members attending large speaker meetings, discussion groups, workshops, dinners and social events.

He was also a strong supporter of the Puerto Vallarta Children's Soccer League, the Kid's Cup Tennis Tournament, the Emiliano Zapata Neighborhood and Business Association, Make-A-Wish Mexico, the Clinica De Terapia Fisica in El Tuito, and many other local non-profit organizations.

Bob's enthusiastic approach to life not only helped the Banderas News Team provide the Banderas Bay area with a quality online publication, but he was also somewhat of a local personality who was loved by many. He will be missed.