Robert Raymond Barba, Jr., aka. Shinzakura, adored husband of Rebecca Barba (Ashburn, Virginia), and son of Robert Barba Sr. (Deceased) and Sylvia Bratincevic (Glendora, California), passed away on 16 October, 2024.

Robert was born in Los Angeles, California, on 15 February, 1971. Upon graduation from  Cantwell Catholic High School, he briefly attended USC before enlisting in the US Navy where he served for 13 years as a YN2, earning the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the Navy 'E' Ribbon, the National Defence Service Medal, the Armed Forces Service Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, the Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon, and the NATO Medal. Often referring to himself as an "old salt", Rob regarded his service with pride and continued to fondly refer to the Navy, as well as generously donating to the USO and various other veterans' charities.

Upon leaving the service and moving to Winchester, VA, Robert worked for the Department of the Interior at the Fish and Wildlife Service, though true passion was his writing. Since chidlhood, he was continuously writing,  publishing numerous collections of short stories online and mentoring many aspiring writers of many different ages from all walks of life.

Robert was also a dedicated graphic designer and font maker, with one of his fonts catalogued in the Klingspor Museum in Offenbach, Germany. In addition, he was an amateur musician (Mitsukai Sound Systems) and streamer (Shinzakura), demonstrating his various art and writing projects on various platforms. As with veterans and aspiring writers, he likewise cultivated aspiring talent in these fields and often donated to individual talents.

Lastly, Robert was dedicated to the various veteran, artistic, and fiction communities he had both built and took part in. A believer in Jesus Christ, he shared and encouraged others in faith. His compassion, encouragement, generosity, sense of humor, and wit touched and inspired many throughout his life.

He is survived by his wife of 20 years, mother, younger sister Andria Barba Scott, stepfather Richard Bratincevic, stepbrother Jonathan Bratincevic, nieces and nephews, and many friends and men-tees across the world.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Robert's name to either Disabled American Veterans (https://www.dav.org/) or Tunnels to Towers Foundation (https://t2t.org/).