Lasting Memories

Ford G. Roberts
July 26, 1939-Oct. 14, 2025
Pleasanton, California

Dr. Ford G. Roberts, retired orthodontist and longtime resident of Pleasanton, passed away peacefully on October 14, of cancer.

He grew up in Hinsdale, Illinois. After attending college at Cornell University, he completed his dental training and orthodontics residency at the University of Illinois Chicago College of Dentistry. He also served briefly as a dentist in the Navy. He moved with his wife Mary and growing family to Pleasanton in 1972.

He had an orthodontic practice on Cedarwood Lane in Pleasanton for 36 years (1972-2008), where he straightened the teeth of several generations of students in local high schools and middle schools. His open-plan office was a warm and welcoming space that often felt like a community center. Every day he wore his trademark uniform to work: white pants and brightly-colored striped T shirts. It was truly a place of smiles.

He was an expert carpenter who loved building things. He also enjoyed cooking pizza, organizing family archives, collecting rocks on the beach, posting silly photos on Facebook, and tending to his extensive gardens and their overly complicated irrigation systems. With the help of his family (and his vintage tractor) he planted and cultivated a small working vineyard, from which he made excellent Cabernets, Chardonnays, and Zinfandels that he shared with friends. In recent years, Dr. Roberts could be found every Saturday morning at the Pleasanton farmers’ market, talking to old patients and bothering the vendors.

He is survived by his wife Mary, his four children, Jennifer, Ford, Glynnis, and Crowan, and three grandchildren.