Robert “Bob” Soll

Service : Tuesday, October 20th at 12:15 pm
Service Location: Shalom Chapel Service
Shalom Memorial Funeral Home
1700 West Rand Road
Arlington Heights, IL 60004

Interment:
Shalom Memorial Park
1700 W. Rand Road
Arlington Heights

Shiva Information

Soll Residence
2424 Hampton Lane
Northbrook, Illinois 60062

Tuesday following interment until 8:30 PM
*Please be aware that this is a NUT FREE shiva.

For any questions, please contact the Shiva Ladies, Randi Berger 773-742-2702

Contributions
American Lung Association
http://www.lung.org

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
http://www.stjude.org

Robert Sherwin “Bob” Soll was born July 27, 1936, in Chicago to Isadore and Esther (née Feldman) Soll. He passed away peacefully surrounded by family on October 17, 2026, at the age of 90.

Bob grew up on Chicago’s West Side during the Depression, in an apartment building at 819 North Ridgeway that his grandfather built. Three generations of the family resided in that building together, and Bob and his family lived in the basement apartment. He attended Ryerson Grade School and Austin High School, where he joined ROTC.

Bob began college at the University of Illinois at Navy Pier and later transferred to the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) to study electrical engineering. In 1959 he graduated from IIT with his engineering degree. Soon after, he bought his first car, a Ford with bucket seats.

In 1962, at a Jewish young adults’ dance at the JCC on Touhy Avenue, Bob met Ann Zandberg. They married in 1965 and settled in an apartment in Evanston, where their first child was born. After living in Skokie, they moved in 1978 to Northbrook, their home for more than fifty years. There they raised their three children and were members of Congregation Beth Shalom.

In 1968, Bob and his father founded Chicago Knitting Mills, which became a well-known sportswear business in Albany Park. For nearly six decades, its varsity sweaters, letterman jackets, and club and fraternity sweaters were worn by generations of Chicagoans and customers nationwide. When he retired this past August, longtime customers came by to see him one more time. One of them even called him a Chicago legend.

Bob was a brilliant, independent thinker—an engineer at heart who could fix anything and always preferred to do things his own way. He was known for his calm demeanor, whimsical stories, and mischievous sense of humor.

Most of all, he was devoted to his family. Whether the question was a repair, a big purchase, or managing finances, he was always a phone call or visit away. And his voice always brightened when one of his children called. Nothing made him happier than time with his family and his grandchildren.

Bob is survived by his beloved wife of 61 years, Ann Soll (née Zandberg); his loving children Jack (Renuka) Soll, Barbara (Rick) Pritikin, and Karen (Justin) Aleo; and his cherished grandchildren Justin and Emmy Soll and Sophie and Eliana Pritikin. He was preceded in death by his parents, Isadore and Esther Soll.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the American Lung Association, www.lung.org, or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, www.stjude.org.

Chapel service Tuesday, October 20, 12:15 PM at Shalom Memorial Funeral Home, 1700 W. Rand Road, Arlington Heights. Interment to follow at Shalom Memorial Park. For a link to view the service, shiva information, and to leave condolences: www.shalommemorial.org, 847-255-3520.