Robert J. Gilligan

Robert John Gilligan was born on April 19, 1941, in Staten Island, New York, to John Joseph Gilligan and Hazel Vivian Van Name. Robert’s ancestry, of Irish and Dutch heritage, is traced to the original settlers of Staten Island in the 1600s.

Bob was a man of confidence and action, and he started early. At 7 years old he walked down the hill from his family home on Homestead Avenue to his first job at Weissglass Stadium, where he helped out with everything from the circus to the stock car races. Still a boy, Bob traveled with a speed roller skating team throughout the northeast. His parents let him stretch; they never saw him race, instead leaving him to manage his youthful racing career. Bob moved onto McKee Technical High School where he received a background in auto mechanics and then joined the Army at 17. He later joined the New York City Police Department, where Bob was a transit cop in Brooklyn and Manhattan. 

Marriage to his sweetheart Andrea resulted in three kids quickly; when ambition called, he left the police force to lease the first Sunoco station on Staten Island. Bob and Andrea sold their house and moved the family into a duplex to launch the Sunoco venture. Bob was proud that he and Andrea bought a wrecker and spent their evenings hustling for tow truck calls. He always said that this is what launched their very successful business, and inspired them to always consider, start or buy additional businesses. All work was done with relentless confidence, humility, and humor that made Bob magnetic. 

In 1973 Bob built a family home on acreage in Flemington, NJ, and founded the Sunoco on Reaville Avenue. His reputation as master mechanic who would only work on American cars was legendary and people drove an hour just so he could change their oil. Bob's relentless ambition and creative marketing skills resulted in him being named Sunoco's Tri-State "Retailer of the Year" for many years running, an award that was given in part for selling over a million gallons of gas each year.

Bob also founded the "Busy Bee" convenience stores with two locations, and the first ever video store in Hunterdon County with a satellite Dunkin Donuts franchise attached. He then founded a construction company, RJG Builders, with numerous residential and commercial projects throughout Hunterdon. On weekends, Bob enjoyed their home at the Jersey shore, vintage car restoration, and furniture building. He earned a USCG 100-ton Merchant Marine certificate and cruised the eastern seaboard in his boat. Bob and Andrea enjoyed world and US travel, including a winter cross-country trip hauling their snowmobiles throughout the west. Bob's love of the Florida Keys and "Wastin' away in Margaritaville" led to the purchase of two different waterfront homes in the Keys, where Bob and Andrea reveled in hosting family and friends during the winter months.

Bob did love and was loved by his wife of 61 years, Andrea; their three children, Dan Gilligan (Brynne), Kelly Ann Dixon, and Kathleen Gilligan; along with grandchildren Timothy Gilligan (Heather), Jamieson Gilligan (Angela), Coreen Lewis (Zachary), Quincie Bashiriyeh (Siavash), Tanner Dixon (Daniela), Garnet Burk; and seven great grandchildren. Robert was predeceased by grandson, Palmerston R.K. Burk and great-grandson, Walter Lewis.

He was an impactful person and was loved by customers, employees, associates, and most of all his family, and Robert drew a wide and positive circle. He will truly be missed.

Funeral services, with military honors, will take place on Saturday, October 5, 2024, at 11:00 AM in the Clover Hill Reformed Church, 890 Amwell Road, Hillsborough, NJ. Visitation will be an hour prior on Saturday, from 10:00 AM until the time of the service in the church. Interment, in Clover Hill Cemetery, will be at a later date. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Bob’s name may be made to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, 2361 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10306 or at www.t2t.org. 

Arrangements are under the direction of the Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main Street, Flemington, NJ 08822. For further information or to send an online condolence, please visit Bob’s Tribute Wall at www.holcombefisher.com.