Obituary for Franklin E. Robinson

Franklin E. Robinson

March 30, 1925 - February 2, 2022

 

Franklin E. Robinson passed away peacefully at the "Hickman House" in West Chester on February 2, 2022 after a long and fulfilling life. Frank or Tut as he was best known was born on March 30, 1925 in Philadelphia PA to Andrew F. Robinson Sr. and Anita P Robinson. Frank grew up in Swarthmore attending Swarthmore High School and was an active member of the Swarthmore Fire Company. Like many of his generation he dropped out of high school to enlist in the Army during WWII. He proudly served first in the US, then onto the Rhineland, and finally Central Europe before being Honorably Discharged in January 1946.

 

After the war he went back to school to get his GED, then followed in his fathers footsteps as a salesman. Within a few years he found his calling in the confectionary candy business. He ended up working for Y&S Candies as a candy broker and in 1977 was recognized and awarded for being a 25 year member of the National Confectionary Salesmen's Association of America. After Y&S Candies got bought out by Hershey Foods he moved into other areas of sales. Around 1985 he semi-retired, becoming a school bus driver for the Rose Tree Media School District. He fully retired from driving a school bus in 1999.

 

He had many hobbies and was best known for being a tinkerer, but loved cars and car racing events most of all. He attended many racing events around the country in the late 1950's with his brother Andy including Sebring and Watkins Glen. He would later become a member of the Rose Tree Motor Club and compete in many of their events. In the 1970's with the help of friends they built a VW race motor. They put this motor in an unassuming sleeper car, a VW Square Back, and raced it at Cecil County Dragway where he brought home a first place trophy. He would later enjoy attending many car shows with family and friends well into his 90's.

 

He loved vacationing in Maine and spending time at the family's Maine summer house that his parents bought in 1962. He took his family up there during the summers in the late 1960's and throughout the 1970's. In the late 1980's he would go up periodically with his wife Marvel, daughter Jan and her young kids. After Marvel's passing in 1990 he would go up periodically during the summer with his grandchildren and also to get yearly maintenance done. Frank also liked going to Colorado to visit with his daughter Sharon and son Ken. His last trip out west was for the July 4th weekend in 2017. This was after recovering from hip replacement surgery in April of that year at 92 years of age. All his kids came out to Colorado that year to enjoy spending time with him.

 

There is a famous quote from Andy Dufresne in the movie "The Shawshank Redemption". "I guess it comes down to a simple choice, really. Get busy living or get busy dying”. He reminds us all that we have 86,400 seconds each day. It's your choice to just keep living the life that just gets you by, or live a life that truly fulfills you. Frank's mindset was always the key to a long life, other than to eat right, was to stay active, and he stayed that way all the way till the end. In fact in the fall of 2018 at the age of 93 he asked his son Jim to take him for a ride on his new BMW adventure motorcycle. It may have only been a short 16 mile ride but he enjoyed every minute of it.

 

He was preceded in death by his brothers Andrew F Robinson Jr. and Norman P Robinson, wife Marvel C Robinson, and grandchild Luke T. Ballantine. He is survived by his children Sharon R Dale (Vail CO), Janet R Ballantine (Media PA), James A Robinson (West Chester PA), Kenneth E Robinson (Parker CO), three grandchildren Chenoa M. Ballantine, Greg L. Ballantine, Hannah L. Ballantine, and one great grandchild Annabelle M. Ballantine.

 

A private burial will be scheduled for late Spring or Summer TBD, and a Celebration of Life will follow for all family and friends, also TBD.

 

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation in Franks memory may be made to one of the following:

Cure Alzheimer's Fund - https://curealz.org/

Alzheimer's Foundation of America - https://alzfdn.org/

Dementia Society of America - https://www.dementiasociety.org/

Disabled American Veterans Charitable Service Trust - https://cst.dav.org/