USA Softball Mourns Passing of Hall of Fame Umpire
USA Softball is mourning the loss of Hall of Fame umpire Robert Savoie, who passed away Monday.
He was 89 years old.
Savoie was preceded in death by his loving wife, Arlene Nave, of 59 years, and is survived by their three daughters, four grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and their four step-grandchildren.
Savoie and Arlene married in 1958, welcoming their three daughters – Deborah, Donna, and Diane – along with grandchildren, Bridgette, Kelly, Trevor, and Natalie, along with great-grandchildren Audrey, Matthew, Owen, Addison, Caroline, Isla, Kyle, Ashley, Kennedy, Tanner, Nolan, and Claire.
It was his family's love for sports that introduced him to the sport of softball. He became an umpire with the Amateur Softball Association in 1970, working in Hawaii, Nebraska and Maryland. In addition to the states he serves, he also worked tournaments all over the country.
USA Softball mourns the loss of Hall of Fame Umpire, Robert Savoie. Our thoughts and prayers are with Bob's family. https://t.co/Vnp1m1JSYn pic.twitter.com/lg2ltN6xlG
— USA Softball (@USASoftball) April 16, 2025
Savoie was the ASA Chief Umpire for the Washington D.C. area from 1978-1990.
From there, Savoie was selected as the ASA Chief Umpire for the Central Atlantic Region from 1996-2006, and was he was inducted into the ASA National Softball Hall of Fame in 2005.
Born in Central Falls, R.I., on Feb. 27, 1936, Savoie was an only child and attended St. Matthew’s Parochial School and graduated from Assumption High School in Worcester, Mass., in 1953.
Shortly after high school, Savoie enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and served for 20-plus years as a weather observer and forecaster. He retired as a Master Sergeant.
Throughout his career, he was assigned to New York, Illinois (twice), Ohio, Massachusetts (twice), New Hampshire, Maryland, Nebraska, Morocco, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.
Savoie retired from work in 1994 with a total of almost 40 years of Federal Service.
Savoie’s family asks that, in lieu of flowers, to make donations be made to the Talbot Hospice in his name. He will be buried with military honors at Maryland Eastern Shore Veterans Cemetery on Tuesday, April 22.
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-1d7db99dccc9abef7b9378f016b22b68.webp "Maren Angus-Coombs")
Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. She has been covering college softball since 2016 for various outlets including Softball America, ESPNW and Hurrdat Sports. She is currently the managing editor of Softball On SI and also serves as an analyst for Nebraska softball games on Nebraska Public Media and B1G+.