Robert Maxwell Kessler, III, 71 of Fort Wayne passed away Monday, May 19, 2025, at Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne. He was born July 6, 1953, in St Louis, Missouri to Robert Maxwell and Francis (Wilson) Kessler, II. He married Paula Noble, she survives.

Robert served as a Captain for the Glendale Fire Department in Glendale, Arizona, retiring as a Captain. He won the Arizona Governor's Award for Valor for saving the life of a fellow firefighter in a wildfire known as the Dude Fire. The Dude fire took the lives of six brave firefighters and burnt nearly 25,000 acres. He also served as a flight Paramedic for Air Evac, an EMT Instructor at Glendale Community College, and was former President of the Arizona Landcruiser Association. He received numerous awards and accolades from the City of Glendale and mentored and recruited several members of the fire service.

He is survived by his wife Paula of Fort Wayne; children, John Kessler of Fort Wayne, Michael Kessler of Illinois, Selina Thurber of Waynedale, Brian Kessler of Fort Wayne, Kellie Kessler of Fort Wayne, Ladona Guerrero of Iowa, Lee Schroeder of Ohio, and a sister, Janis Fults of Arizona.