Robert "Bob" Trent Munger

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Robert “Bob” Trent Munger of Bentonville on January 1st, 2024 at the age of 65.

Robert was born in Little Rock to Bob and Jean Munger. He graduated from Little Rock Catholic High in 1976 and from the University of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture with a Bachelor of Architecture degree in 1985, where he was a member of Lambda Chi fraternity. He had a 23 year career as an architect, starting in Colorado and ending in Georgia, where he transitioned to construction program management. Robert served as Program manager for the Augusta Richmond County Capital Improvement Program, overseeing 180 million dollars of sales tax funded projects. In this capacity he saved the taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.

During Robert’s career as an architect he had diverse professional experience including as Construction Manager, Architectural Project Manager, Project Architect, and Consultant. Some of the projects he worked on included the East Central Georgia Regional Library, Augusta Judicial Center, Webster Detention Center, Augusta Municipal Building, and Augusta Museum of History, all in Augusta, Georgia. Robert also worked on the Von Braun Civic Center in Huntsville, AL; The Mal Moore Football Facility and Bryant Denny Football Stadium at The University of Alabama; Memorial Stadium at Clemson University; The U.S. Army Logistics Center Redstone Arsenal in Alabama; the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama; Northside Hospital Medical Building in Alpharetta, GA; and numerous multifamily projects in Texas and Minnesota.

Robert was an aspiring entrepreneur and passionate about sustainability, founding the nonprofit August Greenway Alliance in August 2011 and co-founding SUMO, the country’s first low speed EV carshare company.

Robert was also an author. He wrote several books, including “The Architecture of Exclusion”, 1992, an unvarnished, insider’s look at the regulatory affairs of the architectural profession. This book was instrumental in reforming the USA architectural profession’s licensing exam.

“The Charette Legacy”, 2011, written under the pen name of John Highsmith Adams, is

a suspense novel which owes much of its genesis to the same events that inspired

“The Architecture of Exclusion”.

“Scion, Soldier, Slave”, 2023, is Robert’s last novel. This book is a historical novel about three Civil War-era families from disparate circumstances whose lives become interwoven in the decades before, during, and after The Civil War. Two of the families are based on Midwestern ancestors of the author. The third family is purely fictional-slaves from a Georgia plantation who gain their freedom and strive to make a new life as free people, first in Memphis and then in St. Louis.

Robert was an avid Razorbacks fan, swimmer, and hiker. He remained a keen long distance swimmer throughout the majority of his battle against cancer. He also enjoyed competitive tennis for many years as both a junior player in Little Rock and an adult in Georgia.

Robert is survived by his two deeply beloved daughters, Emily Munger and Audrey Munger, both of Augusta, Georgia; his partner Tracey George of Bentonville; sisters Carol Jones (Bruce) of Jonesboro, Melissa Moore of Little Rock, and Marjorie Watkins of North Little Rock; and his honorary grandson David Watts of Bentonville. He is also survived by eight nieces and nephews.

Robert fought a brave and valiant battle against glioblastoma for nearly two years, displaying unwavering courage and strength. He faced this daunting adversity with grace which was an inspiration to all who knew him, Throughout this journey he remained kind, loving and gentle.

We will miss him greatly.

In lieu of flowers memorial gifts may be made to Circle of Life Hospice in Bentonville, Arkansas