Kenneth Clair Robinson of Silverton, Oregon, died peacefully and without pain from kidney failure at home surrounded by his loving wife and two children.
Kenneth was born in Mansfield, Ohio on May 25, 1935 to Ethel Eloise Bond Robinson (1915-1990) and John Clair Robinson (1911-1978). An only child, Kenneth moved many times during his childhood with his parents, back and forth between Ohio, Florida, and California.
After high school in Orlando, Florida in 1953, Kenneth enlisted in the Air Force in 1955 and was later deployed to Iceland where he worked in radio communications. After his honorable discharge from the Air Force in 1959, Kenneth worked for RCA, as a private contractor with NASA. He spent three years on Grand Turk managing the communications center that tracked early satellites and nascent space flight. Kenneth even met Astronaut John Glenn and his crew on a splashdown in 1962.
In a transfer to Pretoria, South Africa, he met Susara Susanna Buys and they were married in 1965. By 1972, the couple and their two children had settled on a small Christmas Tree farm in Silverton Hills above Drakes Crossing. They named the farm Kaya Entabeni – Zulu for “Home on the Mountain.” Kenneth also completed his Associates degree in Business Administration at Chemeketa Community College. He and Susanna left their beloved Kaya Entabeni in 2009 to move into Silverton.
Kenneth is survived by his wife Susara Susanna; his daughter; Elmarie Robinson Parker and husband Scott Parker; his son, Stephen Robinson; and grandson Blake Robinson. He is also survived by extended family in Ohio and South Africa and many friends in South Africa and across the United States.
A graveside service was held on Oct. 1 at at Silverton Cemetery. Arrangements are by Unger Funeral Chapel.
