Robert "Bob" Kemp

Robert “Bob” Kemp, 89, of Evanston, died Saturday, July 11, 2026.

Bob was Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry who spent decades on the faculty of Chicago Medical School (now Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science) before retiring in 2002.

He was born on February 12, 1937, in Massillon, Ohio, to Art and Evelyn Kemp and was the youngest of four children.

He graduated from The College of Wooster in Ohio with a degree in chemistry, and then earned his PhD in biochemistry at Yale University. He did a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Washington-Seattle. His first faculty position was at the Medical School at Marquette University (now called the Medical College of Wisconsin) in Milwaukee.

In 1971, he won a Fulbright fellowship to work at the University of Chile in Valdivia. Bob’s experience in Chile connected him with South American researchers whose careers he helped nurture, both in the US and abroad.

In 1976, he joined the faculty at Chicago Medical School and moved to Evanston. Kemp chaired the school’s Department of Biochemistry and, in a role he continued after his retirement, led the admissions committee.

Dr. Kemp’s extensive research career was often funded by the National Institutes of Health and contributed greatly to scientific understanding of human regulatory systems and enzyme functions, particularly phosphofructokinase which plays a crucial role in cellular energy metabolism. He was heavily involved in the broader scientific community, serving on NIH peer review and study sections. He was also committed to reducing the gender gap among science faculty, hiring more women than any previous chair.

In 1967 he married his first wife, Marilyn. They had two daughters, Suzanne and Kathryn.

He married his wife, Judy, in 1985 in the living room of their Evanston home, and became a stepfather to her daughters, Joanna and Jessica. He was a devoted parent to all four daughters and, later, a loving grandfather to eight grandchildren.

Bob was a Renaissance man. He traveled the world with his wife; loved attending the theater and concerts; was an avid reader; for a time, developed his own photos in a darkroom in the basement; and enjoyed golfing, gardening and bird watching. He also made his own signature granola and had an uncanny knack for picking the best bottles of red wine under $20.

He loved spending time with his family and looked forward to their winter trips to Sanibel Island, Florida. He and Judy hosted many events in their Evanston home, and he particularly loved their annual holiday open house where friends and relatives would gather.

He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Judy; his daughters, Suzanne (Andy) Mynard, Kathryn Kemp, Joanna (Derek) Lewis, and Jessica (Rob) Lott; his grandchildren, Grant Mynard, Elena and Alexander Guylay, Naomi, Emi and Eli Lewis, and Shuli and Noam Lott. He was preceded in death by his parents, and his siblings, Bill, Barbara and Eugene.

A shiva will be held at the Kemp residence on Thursday, July 16th from 4 to 6 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m., and Friday, July 17th from 2 to 5 p.m. A memorial service will take place at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, Bob would have loved for people to donate to a cause special to them that promotes justice, equality and real science.

Arrangements entrusted to Chicagoland Cremation Options in Schiller Park, Illinois.