Don Kelleher, neighbor: “He was nice, like, a nice kid—most of the time. We played a lot of street hockey and he could be real competitive. Like, when he won he’d do this little dance and make a face, like, ‘You suck.’ He wouldn’t say those words, but it was that kind of a look. And if he lost—forget it. He’d say we cheated or something. And then he’d say, ‘But I forgive you. Not now, because you cheated, but someday, I will forgive you.’ Which is kind of a weird thing for a seven-year-old to say.”
Kevin Russell, grade-school friend: “Do you remember Hot Wheels? The little metal cars? They were popular when we were kids. Bobby and I loved them. He’d set up a track in his basement. The cars had names like Custom Camaro and Beatnik Bandit. My favorites were the Mongoose and the Snake. I’d bring my cars over and we’d race them. Except one day Bobby is, like, ‘I’ve changed the names of my cars.’ And I’m, like, ‘O.K.’ And he’s, like, ‘You want to know their new names?’ And I’m, like, ‘Sure.’ ‘Well, this one,’ he says, ‘is Abraham, father of nations.’ And I’m, like, ‘Umm, O.K.’ And then he points to another one and says, ‘This one is Simon Peter, upon whom I shall build my church and also win this race.’ And at this point I’m kind of confused. And then he points to a car over in the corner and he says, ‘Do you know who that car is?’ Now I kind of just want to go home, but I say, ‘No, who?’ And he says, ‘That’s Pontius Pilate, the fifth governor of Judea who presided over the trial of Jesus Christ and ordered his execution. I don’t use that car. I hate that car.’ And I was, like, ‘That’s cool. Hey, maybe let’s play Wiffle ball.’ ”
Bill Esposito, fellow altar boy with Prevost: “He was fine. I wouldn’t say Bob was a great altar boy. Wayne LoPresti—now he was a great altar boy. Always won Best Altar Boy. Super pious kid. Kind of lost his way later in life, though. Ended up going to prison years later for armed robbery. But Bob—he would space out a lot, miss ringing the bells, get super aggressive with incense. ‘Why Sundays?’ he used to ask. Had no idea what he meant.”
Dale Winter, fellow Cub Scout: “Bobby was a good guy. But sometimes he’d say strange things. Like this one time he said, ‘My last name is Prevost.’ And I’m, like, ‘Duh, no kidding.’ And he’s, like, ‘Don’t you think it’s strange that my last name contains the letters in the word “pope.” ’ And I’m, like, ‘Dude, it also has the letters to spell the word “stove.” Doofus.’ And then he’d do weird shit like put his hand on my head, unprompted, which was annoying.”
Mike Kelley, middle-school friend, played C.Y.O. basketball with Prevost: “Bob was the best. Like, zero bad things to say about him. Nicest guy. But there were times . . . it’s not a criticism . . . but there were times that were a little strange. I had this huge crush on Colleen McIlheney because she was super cute, and also had big boobs. And one day we’re at school, in the cafeteria, and I say to Bob, ‘Did you see that sweater Colleen McIlheney is wearing?’ And Bob puts his bologna and cheese down (same sandwich every day) and says, ‘Confess your sins.’ I go, ‘What sins?’ He says, ‘Lust—lust is a sin.’ I go, ‘There’s no way those boobs can be a sin.’ And I kind of laugh. And Bob kind of laughs because boobs is just a funny word and also it was Colleen McIlheney. And he goes back to eating his sandwich, but then he says, real low, ‘You will rot in Hell for eternity.’ I couldn’t tell if he was serious.” ♦
