Phyllis Robinson

After a long life of using her heart and hands to better her world, Phyllis Harding Robinson, 102, has departed the earth. She died peacefully with her family by her side on May 3, 2017, at Worthington Christian Village, where she had lived for 4 years. A native of Canada, Mrs. Robinson was well traveled, living in more than half a dozen states with her husband of nearly half a century, and those she met remember her as warm, friendly and giving. Born November 13, 1914, in Victoria, British Columbia, Phyllis Elizabeth Mary Harding was the only child of Alfred Harding, originally from England, and Mary Ella Schubert Harding. Phyllis became a U.S. citizen when the family moved to New Jersey in her youth, but she spent many summers with her cousins at her grandparents’ ranch in the picturesque Okanagan Valley and she often recalled those happy times. Upon graduating high school, she took secretarial courses and looked for work to support herself and help her family, putting aside her college plans because of the Great Depression. She commuted from New Jersey to office jobs in New York City for about a decade, until she met and married Theodore Douglas Robinson, of South Natick, Mass. in June, 1942. The couple soon welcomed a daughter, Nancy, and a son, Don. Mrs. Robinson loved the work of caring for her home and family and was adept at baking, sewing, and other domestic arts. A supportive partner to her husband, Mrs. Robinson helped pack up and move the family every few years as his aeronautical engineering jobs dictated, living in New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Louisiana and Ohio. The Robinsons later retired to Asheville, N.C., for a number of years before returning to Columbus to live near their son, daughter-in-law and granddaughters. Phyllis was modest about her cooking skills but always kept her family well fed, and her White Christmas Pie was an eagerly anticipated part of the holidays. Her granddaughters remember her as a patient teacher who showed them how to garden and taught them to knit on summer visits. For many years her busy hands made things for loved ones and friends. She sewed clothes for herself and her family, crocheted doll dresses, made stuffed animals and knitted sweaters for her granddaughters, and her needlework adorned chair cushions and wall hangings throughout the house. She had a passion for opera and loved classical music, attending live performances of both when possible and listening to records and the radio regularly. For the past 20 years Phyllis lived in Worthington, living at Melbourne Village and Worthington Christian Village. She was active in the Griswold Senior Center for many years, volunteering and participating in outings and activities. In her last years, she also became an enthusiastic Ohio State football fan. She was a dedicated Christian Scientist and was an active church member wherever she lived, previously attending the First Church of Christ, Scientist (formerly Third Church) in Clintonville. Mrs. Robinson is survived by daughter Nancy Robinson, of New York City; son Don Robinson and his wife Barbara, of Dublin, Ohio; granddaughters Alicia Robinson, of Newport Beach, Calif., and Tracy Robinson and husband Aaron Steelman, and great-grandson Ben Steelman, of Richmond, Va. A memorial service will be held on May 20 at Rutherford-Corbin Funeral Home, 515 High Street, Worthington, OH 43085. The family will receive friends at 1 p.m. followed by a service at 2 p.m. Contributions in her name may be made to Ohio Health Hospice-Kobacker House, 800 McConnell Road, Columbus, OH 43214.

Phyllis Robinson

November 13, 1914 - May 3, 2017