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Friday, April 17, 2015
YOLO COUNTY NEWS
99 CENTS
Russell Harper Robinson
March 22, 1917 — Aug. 21, 2012
Lt. Col. Russell Harper Robinson passed away on Aug. 21, 2012, at the age of 95. He was born in Oakland on March 22, 1917, the son of Margarita and Russell T. Robinson. He was called Bobby as a child and then Bob by family, and later Robby by friends.
Russell and his younger siblings Eleanor and Ted, grew up on cattle/dairy ranches in California. After graduating from Gonzales High School in Monterey County, California, Russell attended Hartnell College in Salinas and then UC Davis, where he studied agricultural engineering. He married his high school sweetheart Lois Wells in the Yolo County Courthouse in 1937 .
Flight was the passion that took him many places. With Trans World Airlines in Kansas City, Mo., he was the personal pilot of airlines president Jack Frye. During World War II Russell entered the U.S. Navy where he was stationed at the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi, Texas. Among other things, he transported members of the USO when they entertained U.S. Navy personnel stateside.
After the war there was a move to Goleta, where Russell was a partner in the short-lived Eagle Air Freight, the owner of Robinson Aviation Service, as well as a member of the Naval Reserve. The family returned to Davis in 1950, where his father was teaching at the university. He designed and built the family home in Willowbank on Montgomery Avenue in the 1950s. Russell worked at the University Airport before signing on as a helicopter pilot for the California Air National Guard. He was the Aviation Support Facility Commander at the Sacramento Air Guard’s shops at Mather Air Force Base. During his lifetime Russell flew a wide variety of aircraft and logged a phenomenal number of flying hours.
He built a 34-foot sailboat. In 1978 he and Lois sailed out of San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. Their adventures took them down the Mexican and the Central American west coasts, through the Panama Canal, north to Annapolis, Md, and back to Long Island in the Bahamas, where he designed and built a second home. He also did aircraft restoration at the UC Davis airport.
Russell’s wife Lois preceded him in death in 2003. He is survived by his five children, Beth Kraft of Sacramento, Judy Clark (David) of Livermore, Russ (Michelle) of Palo Cedro, Dorothy Nylen (Bob) of Dayton, Nev., and Bob (Lolet) of Lake Elsinore. He also leaves 12 grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren. A family celebration of his life will be held at a later date.
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