"Beloved son and best friend, a year has passed and we'll never recover from the loss of you. Simply the best...you are with us always. Ann (Mumsie) "
In loving memory of
Ian Robinson
December 9, 1963 - February 21, 2022
Beloved husband and doting stepfather Ian Robinson, age 58, of Portsmouth, RI passed away on February 21, 2022. He leaves behind his grieving family, his wife Michele Kelly-Robinson, his stepson Michael Kelly, his mother Ann Robinson, sister Deborah Brown, brother-in-law Alan, niece Jasmine, and nephew Kieran of the U.K., and many, many friends all over the world. He was predeceased by his father Anthony (Gallimore) Robinson.
Ian was a very grounded, reliable, trustworthy man of integrity, who had a great sense of humor and was so fun to be with. He was thoughtful, kind, loving, and hard-working. He was a devout Christian and took incredibly good care of his family. Ian loved his family and friends; enjoyed travelling the world for work and vacations; hiking; mountain biking; weightlifting; running; gardening; talking (calmly) about philosophy, religion, and politics; and anything in the great outdoors. He was brilliant; he knew something about everything and a lot about many things and could solve almost any problem - big or small. We are lost without him.
Ian was born in Plymouth, England and enjoyed spending his early childhood with his family in Singapore, where his father was stationed in the Royal Marines. He remembered his 4th birthday travelling through India as an adventure. His family then settled in Cornwall, U.K. where Ian attended school, made many life-long friends, and rode his horse across the moors accompanied by his dog Trampas, named after a character from the American western, The Virginian. Upon finishing high school, Ian joined the U.K. Merchant Navy as a Radio Officer and received a Higher National Certificate in Marine Radar and Radio from Plymouth College U.K. He moved to Holland to take a position in engineering with LTX, which later became Cohu and stayed with the company for 30 years. In 2001, Ian fulfilled his dream of moving to the United States, transferring to the company's Norwood, MA location as Director of Customer Education, where again, Ian made so many friends. He obtained his B.S. in Business at the University of Phoenix, and ten years after moving to the U.S., he fulfilled another dream, to become a U.S. citizen.
In 2010, Michele Kelly saw Ian Robinson on a hike around L-Pond in Pascoag, RI, and she instantly fell madly in love. She deftly convinced him to ask her on their first date, and they married in 2012, making Michele the happiest, luckiest woman in the world. He also became the greatest stepdad to her son Michael, and they enjoyed doing many things together including building an authentic colonial-style timber frame building, mountain biking, eating steak, and watching guy movies.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, March 12 at 10:30 am at Holy Ghost Church, 316 Judson Street, Tiverton, RI 02878.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to his favorite charity, Wounded Warriors Family Support, 11218 John Galt Boulevard, Suite 103, Omaha, NE 68137.
Tributes
"My heartfelt sympathy to the family for the loss of Ian with whom I shared several years at LTX. I liked chatting with him about technical and ordinary life issues and admired his impeccable British accent. He was a real gentleman. God bless your soul Rest In Peace Ian."
"Mark Sajnacki March 28, 2022 My heartfelt sympathy to the family for the loss of Ian with whom I used to work at LTX for several years. I liked chatting with him on technical and ordinary life issues and admired his impeccable British accent. He was a real gentleman. Rest In Peace Ian"
"I am so sad by this news. I knew Ian and Ann a long time ago, and although we lost touch over the years, the news still came as a shock. My thoughts are with Ann, and of course Ian's family in the States. He was such a lovely person and will leave quite a large hole in the lives of the people who knew him."
"I'm so sorry and shocked to hear the news about Ian. We worked together at LTX during the '90s. He was such a nice guy and always had time for everyone. a great person to talk to during tough times at work. Lost touch after he moved to the US, but remember our time as colleagues. Thoughts and prayers with you. Rest In Peace Ian"
"So sorry to hear the news about Ian. I worked with Ian for about 5 years while at LTX in the early 90?s. He made my wife and I very welcome when we spent the first few months in Woking as I attended training. I last spoke to Ian via LinkedIn in 2020 and I?m glad I caught up with him then. He was a true gentleman, may he rest in peace. "
"I am sorry to hear about the loss of such a wonderful man. I used to stop by Ian's office to say hi, and would always leave with some words of wisdom. I pray for his family, that they will find healing, and knowing he has touched many lives in a wonderful way."
"My sincere condolences on the passing of Ian. I worked with Ian in the 80's and 90's and actually became his lodger during our time at LTX in Woking. I enjoyed his friendship, good humour and strong ethics. Although I only saw him once since he moved to the US we were in touch and good friendship never dies. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends. R.I.P buddy."
"I am so so sorry to hear of Ian's passing. Ian was my dearest friend while he worked at LTX Holland in the 80s and we stayed in touch when he left, but less regularly with the passing of the years. When he lived in Holland we spent loads of time together drinking whiskey, talking, eating, sailing, driving our cars... Ann came over regularly and we became friends too. I saw Ann in Cornwall some years ago and I can't imagine how devastated she must be. Ann, my heart goes out to you. Ian was so much fun to be with, to work with, to hang out with. He was loyal, sweet, caring, funny and absolutely brilliant. He was adamant that I visit Cornwall and I did, many many times. Cornwall became my most cherished place on earth - but by then Ian had already left for the US. He will be so missed and I am so so sorry for Michelle and Michael. The world has lost a beautiful soul. RIP my dear friend "
"My deepest condolences go out to Ian's family. I never got to know Michelle or Michael, but I did get to meet his mother Ann. (who Ian called Ann.) I knew Ian for the best part of 35 years. We both started working at LTX within 6 months of each other and over the years became firm friends, both in Europe then when we both moved to the US.. We learned from each other over the years. I taught Ian Synchromaster hardware, he taught me Synchromaster Apps. Due to Ian being on the East cost and me being on the West coast, we kind of drifted apart, but we still remained good - but geographically distant - friends. Ian was a force of nature when he decided that something should be dealt with, and I shall miss his single mindedness and dedication to his friends and family.. He had a truly big heart which shall be greatly missed.. RIP my old friend.."
"Sincere condolences to Michelle and Michael and Ian?s Mum and sister and family. I had the privilege of working with Ian at LTX for over a decade. Ian was an exemplary professional, dedicated fellow Brit and respected colleague of the highest integrity. He was also a great friend. His love for Michelle and Michael and his family were always part of any conversation as were his tales of his world travels, hiking and biking adventures. Ian was a lovely, decent man. God bless you, Ian, may you rest in His Peace. Amen. - John and Anna Rae-Kelly"
"I?m sorry to hear of Ian?s passing and my heartfelt condolences go out to all of Ian?s loved ones. As a young engineer at the start of my career back in 1999, Ian was somebody I very much admired and looked up to having met him when we were both working at LTX in Woking UK. At the time he had a blue MGB sportscar (with wire wheels) which was the subject of many of our conversations together with his love of Cornwall, the great outdoors, his mum and horse riding. When he left for the US he gave me a book on the ?Fast Fourier Transform? which I still have to this day. I had the chance to visit Ian after he?d moved to the US during a trip with LTX. He really looked after me and we went Mountain biking and kayaking in the white mountains. We were in a two-man Kayak and Ian was so good at it that we finished about half an hour ahead of all the other boats. I can remember going to the gym with him a few times and being his spot man for the bench press. He was twice as strong as I was. In his role as a technical instructor he could explain really difficult technical concepts in a visual and digestible way which together with his incredible work ethic and great personality explained his rapid rise through the ranks at LTX. He was a great guy and having read his obituary I?m delighted to see that he found true happiness before he was sadly taken from us. Farewell my friend. I?ll always remember you."
"Ian was a highly respected and very well liked teammate at Cohu. Unlike many of his colleagues who worked with him for decades, I am sorry I only had the chance to work with him these past 2 years. Within that time, I always enjoyed talking with him about work and the world outside of work, appreciating his insights and his calm approach. He will be deeply missed. - Ian Lawee"
"My deepest sympathies to Ian?s family and friends. To lose a son, brother, husband, and step-father who is loved so deeply is tragic. I am very sorry for your loss. I hope that you can take some comfort in knowing what a great person Ian was. I had the pleasure of working with Ian for over 20 years. He was friendly, funny and very bright. He loved talking about Michelle and Michael, and when doing so his face would always light up. He told me about his family in Cornwall and he was very proud of how he was raised. He made me laugh many a time. He will be missed. - Antoinette McKinley, Cohu"
"Ian was a great guy to know and I always liked talking to him about his travels. He'll be missed by many.... Paul Keefe Cohu"
"Ian was a dear friend and co-worker. His cubicle was next to mine and we often consulted with each other on technical things. We also shared many lunchtime walks. I'd bet we walked together for over 200 miles over the years, and that's just around the parking lot. I'll treasure the many conversations we had on all topics, technical, political, religious, and family. I can attest that his love for Michele and Michael was deep and never-ending. - Tom Currie, Cohu, RF Applications Manager."