09/17/2026
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Robert R. “Bob” Carlson at age 87 on September 16, 2026. Without Bob’s wisdom and willingness to make changes, Central Office Service and Supply would not exist today. He often found it necessary to be patient but persistent to convince the other owners of changes which always ultimately yielded benefits and kept taking the business to the next level.
Bob and Sharil Carlson moved to Clay Center with their family in 1968 and he began working for Central Office Service and Supply primarily as an accountant. Central Office combined office supplies, furniture, machines, gifts, greeting cards and accounting services all in one dual address location, 421 to 423 Lincoln Avenue. “Copiers” were just beginning to be sold by Central Office, and Bob learned to service these early machines which were a liquid process and prone to paper jams!
In 1971 Bob became a co-owner with founding partners Wilson McMahan and Henry Copeland. When Steve McMahan came onboard at Central Office in 1974 as a service technician, Bob was happy to hand off the copier service as soon as Steve was able to learn the trade. Bob took on the challenging role of gradually and diplomatically implementing changes in processes and equipment to improve productivity, especially in the accounting division. The accounting office was moved to 5th and Court Street in 1974 where C&R Credit Union is today and was named “Copeland, Carlson and McMahan Accountants.”
Bob helped the accounting office transition from using adding machines and electronic calculators to using a Victor 4900 computing calculator with special income tax programming. This allowed for faster processing of tax returns, but Bob, Henry and to a lesser extent Wilson still put in long hours during the tax season. After Wilson McMahan retired in 1981, Bob took on the primary responsibility of purchasing office supplies and furniture. For many years Bob accompanied Sharil to Gift Shows, patiently assisting in the purchasing decisions.
Randy Carlson joined the firm in 1982 and helped with the transition to using the first IBM PC computer and laser printer for Tax Preparation. Henry retired in 1985 and Randy joined as a partner. With Bob and Randy’s guidance, Central Office began the task of implementing a computer system in 1990 using a server and “dumb” terminals. Bob embraced technology as a means of improving accuracy and efficiency and proved by example that we could all learn and adapt!
Under the leadership of Bob, Randy and Steve, Central Office Service & Supply experienced significant growth in the 1980’s having added a dedicated outside salesforce and also with the physical expansion into the former Buchmann Jewelry Store location at 419 Lincoln Avenue.
After a heart attack in 1991, Bob began to back down from the significant hours required in the accounting division, further aided by the sale of that business in late 1991. Bob retired in 2002 in order to allow Matt McMahan and Steve Wickersham to have more active roles in the business.
Bob was both a leader and a mentor. We continued to look to him for guidance even after retirement. He was pleased to see the transition in ownership from the McMahan’s to Scott and Tresy Leitzel, knowing that the business continues to be in capable hands. Rest in peace, Bob. We love you and miss you! Indeed, your labors here were not in vain!
Pictured from left to right: Steve McMahan, Bob Carlson, Sharil Carlson, Sheryl McMahan.
