Ep. 25 - Robert Unrath

The Foundation Beneath Me

Some episodes ask questions about leadership, purpose, and resilience. This one begins at the source.

In this deeply personal 25th episode of Moving Forward, Linda Anderson sits down with someone whose quiet influence shaped everything that followed — her father, Robert K. Unrath, Jr.

Robert stepped into adulthood early. He became a father at 18. By his early twenties he was raising three children and had already purchased his first home.

Years later, when his children were 11, 9, and 6, he built the house they would continue to grow up in — a symbol not of arrival, but of commitment.

Throughout those early years, Robert worked relentlessly, sometimes holding two jobs, carrying responsibilities most young adults never face. What his children saw wasn’t the pressure — it was the consistency. The discipline. The refusal to quit.

In this conversation, Linda reflects on the foundation beneath her own life and work ethic — and the example that shaped it.

Together they explore:

• What it meant to become a father at 18 and carry responsibility so early

• The reality of working multiple jobs while raising a young family

• Buying a first home at 22 and later building the house his children would grow up in

• Why investing in education for his children became a lifelong priority

• Growing up in Brooklyn while his own father served in the military

• Career growth from sales to management, entrepreneurship, and consulting

• The mentors and relationships that helped shape his leadership

• The difficult but meaningful evolution within their family when Linda married Curtis

• How love, growth, and understanding can change over time

• Seeing work ethic reflected across generations — children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren

At its heart, this episode is about something deeper than achievement.

It is about hope with intention — the kind of hope that doesn’t simply wish for a better future but works, sacrifices, and persists to build it.

It is also a reminder that the foundations of our lives are often laid quietly by the people who came before us.

As Linda reflects in this conversation:

“Moving forward isn’t about having everything figured out. It’s about deciding not to quit.”

This episode honors the kind of leadership that rarely seeks recognition — but shapes generations.

Before there was a podcast about moving forward, there was a father who showed me what it looked like.

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Music by Maksym_Dudchyk from Pixabay

Podcast produced by Ury Gonzalez