Robert William Heyer II

Robert William Heyer II, known to all as Bob, was born on May 16, 1946, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the first child of Richard Ellis and Ethel Katherine Heyer. He grew up in St. Louis Park and later Bloomington, graduating from Lincoln High School in 1964. Bob passed away on March 12, 2026, at the age of 79 in Bloomington, Minnesota.

After attending Bethany College of Missions, where he graduated in 1967, Bob spent time supporting mission work in Brazil. There he met Janice Smith, whom he married on January 14, 1972, at Bethany Chapel in Bloomington. Together they returned to Brazil for mission service, later completing his bachelor’s degree in Bible and Religious Education at North Central University in 1975. The couple raised four children—Jennifer (Harald) Endresen, Jonathan (Nicole), Rebecca White, and Katherine (William) Pyne—while serving in Belo Horizonte and São Paulo. In 1985, Bob founded Missão Evangélica de Comunicação Visual, directing it until 1992 and overseeing projects that included two Portuguese Bible translations, work that left a lasting impact on the Brazilian evangelical community.

Upon returning to Minnesota, Bob continued using his graphic design and photography skills in the private sector and as a small business owner. For 18 years he worked at the Apple Store in Edina, blending his technical abilities with a missionary heart that found its field closer to home. In his later years, he cherished time with family, rarely seen without his camera as he captured moments with his twelve grandchildren: Peter (Ingrid) Endresen, Micah (Autumn) White, Markus Endresen, Jacob Heyer, Bella White, Megan Heyer, Alexis White, David Endresen, Levi White, Kel Savage, William Pyne III, and Elizabeth Pyne.

Bob is survived by his loving wife of 54 years, Janice A. Heyer; his four children and their spouses; his twelve grandchildren; and his siblings Thomas (Gloria), Donald (Karen), Richard Jr. (Debra), and Debra (Michael) Nibbe. Preceded in death by his parents, he lived a life marked by hospitality, generosity, and a steadfast calling to lead others to Christ, beginning always with his own family. He faced his final ten-month battle with cancer at home under Jan’s devoted care and passed peacefully in his sleep on March 12, 2026.