John R ROBINSON

In Memory of
John (Jake) R. Robinson

Jake, as he was affectionately known, entered this world on December 7, 1925 and left peacefully on July 24, 2012, having lived a long and large life. In his final days he was blessed to be surrounded by his loving family. He was the namesake of his father John Robertson Robinson, a prominent Toronto lawyer and his grand-father, John R. (Black Jack) Robinson, the Editor of the Toronto Telegram newspaper. His mother Elizabeth (Boultbee) cared for their family in York Mills, with Jake being the eldest of seven (Harry, Tom, Bill, Peter, Gill Watt and Stony). Jake attended University of Toronto Schools and then graduated with an Agriculture Degree from the University of Guelph. With his wife Shirley (Jackson), they farmed outside Grand Valley where they raised cattle, crops and children (Brandy, Robin, John, Jaye and Kelly). Upon retirement, they moved to Grafton and opened a B&B. If you ever met Jake, you would never forget him. In day to day life, he was a man of few words, but at social gatherings, with dry wit he entertained with his antics, skits and quips. His many passions included skiing, roast beef dinners, gardening, civic duty, Scottish dancing, curling, tennis, parades, community theatre and his infamous backyard golf game. His nine grandchildren and his many nieces and nephews will forever remember Grand Dad/Uncle Jake. He had a tremendously welcoming spirit and he treated the community as his family and as his playground. He will be greatly missed by all those who were lucky enough to experience 'Jake'.