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Robert Mates, professor emeritus of mechanical and aerospace engineering, died Nov. 3 in Coronado, Calif., after a short illness. He was 76.
A native of Buffalo, Mates earned degrees from the University of Rochester and Cornell University.
He served on the faculty of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering for 35 years, and also held an appointment as a research professor in the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. A specialist in coronary blood flow, he served as director of UB’s Center for Biomedical Engineering.
A recipient of a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching in 1991, he was a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and served in leadership roles in the organization for 25 years.
Mates also was a volunteer on vocational and technical education in the Buffalo Public Schools, where he received several awards.
In addition, he enjoyed the performing arts, bridge, tennis, sailing, water skiing, home building and remodeling, politics and travel. He and his wife, Gail, took yearly trips abroad, traveling to every continent except Antarctica. In retirement, they traveled across America, visiting national parks and significant sites in nearly every state.
The Mates settled in San Diego in 2005, and moved to Coronado earlier this year.
Memorial gifts may be made to Heifer International, 1 World Ave., Little Rock, Ark., 72202 or to the Foundation for Prader Willi Research, 5455 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, Calif., 90036.
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