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Robert Frey Gentry (November 1st, 1938) or Bob Gentry is an American politician and activist who served on the Laguna Beach, California, city council from 1982-1997. He served three four year terms as mayor. He was also Associate Dean of Students for the University of California, Irvine, from 1970-1997. Gentry is known for his contribution towards the LGBTQ+ community, and environmental activism in Orange County.

Early Life
Robert Gentry was born in the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts and was the second of three sons. He was raised conservatively and disciplined in an organized and stable life.

Education
After growing up and being raised in Massachusetts, in 1956 he would graduate from Highland Park High School in Illinois after his father took a job offer to Chicago.

In the same year, he moved to Indiana to attend Hanover College, a Presbyterian school, where he majored in Sociology and Psychology. After graduating in 1960, he attended graduate school at Indiana University where he received Masters in Student Affair Administration, which had the strongest student affairs program in the nation in 1962.

Career
Gentry began work after college at Elmhurst College in 1963 where he served as an administrator(?) for 6 years.

Soon after he would work in California State University, San Bernardino as the student affairs professional in charge of riot control.

His career would progress in 1970 as he entered the role as Associate Dean of Students at the University of California, Irvine, and consequently moved to Laguna Beach at the age of 32.

In 1981, Bob Gentry would begin his journey into politics would begin in Laguna Beach as he joined a local grassroots committee called, "The Friends of the Trees" which at the time of Gentry's joining were attempting to save two 100-year-old pine trees in his neighborhood. During this time the committee of this group invited him to run for city council. Thus, after the 1982 election, Robert Gentry was elected and put into office in the Laguna Beach City Council.

Subsequently, in that same year, Laguna Beach City Council would elect him to become mayor of the city.

In 1993, Gentry would go into full retirement.

Career at University of California, Irvine
As the Dean of Students at the University of California, Irvine, Robert Gentry aimed to make the campus a safe space for lesbian and gay individuals.

Gentry created the University's first center for Gay and Lesbian students with the help of the student population. Similarly, the Chancellor's Advisor Committee on the Status of Lesbians and Gays was created. This committee made up of students and staff would be used as a place for students to voice their recommendations on what the campus should do to make it a welcoming environment for the gay and lesbian community. Their main point of emphasis was on education, and did multiple presentations in resident halls.

At the university, he was a big advocate for education on the HIV/AIDS crisis. Gentry wanted to address the problem head on, and would implement assemblies aimed to educate students and talk about the situation affecting the staff and students at the university.

Politics/Accomplishments as Mayor
Robert Gentry was committed to helping the Gay and Lesbian community since he had taken public office, he was committed to providing full authenticity to his constituents of Laguna Beach. Gentry was often seen at any pride event in the area that he could make it to.

In addition, Gentry often worked with many different Gay and Lesbian organizations including: PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), Laguna Outreach, and Election Committee for the County of Orange (ECCO). He would also speak openly at schools in Orange County and Laguna Beach about the HIV/AIDs issue, and in many cases the school board would tell him to not come back.

In the Spring of 1982 he introduced his first ordinance to the city council that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation in housing, employment, and public accommodations. Gentry made a point when advocating for this ordinance that, "highlighted liberty and justice for all". This ordinance would make Laguna Beach the first city in Orange County to implement a law that prohibited discrimination against same-sex couples.

Fighting through an immense amount of pushback, Robert Gentry was committed to fighting against HIV/AIDS in the country. In 1988, he was apart of creating the AIDS Education Task Force. This task force was created by the City Council and aimed to reduce occurrences of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome in Laguna Beach.

In 1992, Gentry would introduce and pass the Domestic Partnership Ordinance. The Domestic Partnership Ordinance allowed homosexual couples to formally register with the city. If registered, the city of Laguna Beach now recognized them and gave them specific rights, including: employees of the city getting health benefits for their spouses. This would be demonstrated after the 1993 Laguna Beach fire where he helped a gay couple, who was registered under the Domestic Partnership Ordinance, get their house insured completely with insurance company, State Farm. After this event, State Farm guaranteed that they would provide coverage to gay and lesbian couples throughout the entire United States, as long as they are enrolled in a domestic partnership ordinance.

Environmental Activism
On November 11, 1989, Robert Gentry led a protest known as, "The Walk," which aimed to stop the Irvine Company from developing 2,100 acres of land in Laguna Canyon. This protest drew an estimated 10,000 people, who walked from Downtown Laguna Beach to Laguna Canyon. The Irvine Company eventually agreed to stop development in Laguna Canyon, and let the city of Laguna Beach buy the land. In order to do so, the people of Laguna Beach voted to increase their property taxes for 10 years in order for the city to buy this land.

On the local level, neighborhood preservation and recognizing historical properties was important to the city of Laguna Beach and Robert Gentry. He would introduce a heritage tree ordinance which would protect trees in Laguna Beach that were a certain size, height, and girth which deemed it historic, meaning the city couldn't take it down.

Personal Life
Gentry's philosophy when going into politics was that he was working for the people, and that it was important to be confident about who he was, and to be his authentic self at all times. Thus, in 1983, when the Los Angeles Times reported that Robert Gentry was not only the first openly gay mayor in Orange County, but was the first openly gay elected official in California he was ready for the hate and criticism that came from the publicity.

Robert Gentry has been public about two of his relationships. The first openly known relationship began in 1975 with partner Gary Burdick. They would be together until Burdick passed away from AIDS at age 49 in late January of 1989.

In 1993, Gentry would suffer from a heart attack, but after a heart operation he was able to make a full recovery and wanted to get back to work until 1998.

Gentry's current partner is Dennis Amick. They registered as a couple under the Laguna Beach ordinance in 1992, and in 2008, after the same-sex marriage act got passed in California, they got married in Palm Springs, California. Currently, the two live in Honolulu, Hawaii.