Robert Bodart, the owner, chairman and CEO of Dykes Foodservice Solutions, a foodservice equipment and supplies dealer located in Huntsville, Alabama, passed away on April 6 at the age of 87.
Bodart, born in 1936 in Westville, Illinois, developed a lifelong passion for business and finance while taking an executive corporate financial management course at Harvard University and spending time with his uncle, who had been a professor at both Harvard and Columbia University. He spent 17 years at the Armor Elevator Company, during which he became CFO, before purchasing Dykes Restaurant Supply in 1988 from Cliff and Frank Dykes.
As the owner and CEO at Dykes, Bodart was known as a hands-on, creative businessman who was highly respected by his employees and the Huntsville community. He led the company’s expansion from Alabama and Tennessee into Louisville, Kentucky, and instilled a deep, customer-forward mindset that became part of Dykes’ DNA. In 2017, Bodart handed the reigns of the company over to his son, Brock Bodart, and business partner, Fran Spinelli.
Bodart is remembered for his love of planes and horses, both lifelong hobbies. He owned multiple horses and even participated in quarter horse racing across multiple states. He was also a loving grandfather and especially enjoyed entertaining his grandchildren on his farm, where they rode horses and go-karts.
He is survived by his son, Brock; brothers Ronald (Kathy) and Victor (Lynn); his son-in-law, Erik Furlan; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A celebration of life is planned for Thursday, May 2, at Laughlin Service Funeral Home in Huntsville. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to LUNGevity, P.O. Box 754, Chicago, IL, 606090. All donations should reference “In honor of Angie Bodart Furlan,” Bodart’s beloved daughter, and will be earmarked for lung cancer KRAS research.