A local longtime advocate for mental health and community supporter, Dr. Robert Sivley Sr., passed away recently at the age of 91.
Dr. Sivley is known to many who call Hopkinsville and surrounding communities’ home, as he called it home himself since 1967, and since then, made a tremendous impact on local healthcare and mental healthcare. After earning his Master’s Degree and then his PhD in Clinical Psychology in 1960, he located his family to Hopkinsville to work as a staff psychologist for the newly formed Pennyroyal Mental Health Center.
Within a year, he was appointed as the executive director of the Pennyroyal Center, and he served in that position until his retirement in 1995. After that, he worked as a consulting psychologist for the Kentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center up until 2014.
Dr. Sivley earned numerous awards, including the Mental Health Association of KY Professional Award, The Mental Health Institute Award of Outstanding Mental Health Administrator and the Lifetime Achievement Award by the KY Psychological Association. In 2015, he was inducted into the Kentucky Psychological Hall of Fame, and in 2022, received the Distinguished Service Award from the Pennyroyal Center.
The clinical building at the Pennyroyal Center bears his name.
Dr. Silvey was married to his wife Barbara for 54 years—she was an educator in Hopkinsville for roughly 40-years. He is survived by his three sons, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, with another on the way.
Memorial services will be held at a later date.
In a post to social media, officials with the Pennyroyal Center say Dr. Sivley was a visionary leader whose dedication and compassion profoundly shaped the Pennyroyal Center and the broader community, with his commitment to mental health services transforming countless lives.