Obituary of John Francis Whiting Robbins

John Francis Whiting Robbins was born November 5, 1921 to Sidney & Beatrice Robbins in Balham, London and sadly departed from us on May 23, 2015 at his home in Los Altos, California. John's life time spanned 93 ½ years, 3 continents and 4 countries. While growing up in England, John developed a mechanical aptitude through his love of both miniature railroads (he was allowed to run engines at the tender age of 12) and automobiles (he worked on many during his teens for family friends and relatives in trade for the privilege of driving them). He also developed a love of classical music while his mother taught him to play her baby grand piano. He was able to play that same piano and an organ given to him by a dear friend, until near the time of his passing. John graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from City and Guilds College of London in 1941. He was in the Royal Air Force during WWII from 1941-1946, with a final rank of Flight Lieutenant responsible for the maintenance of Hurricane and Lancaster aircraft and motor transport. His service brought him from England to an RAF base in Sierra Leone, Africa. During his time in the RAF he met his future wife Joan Young, who was serving in the Secretary Pool. Following the war they were married in January 1948 and became the proud parents of Martin John Robbins in November of that same year. John supported his family working as a Mechanical Engineer at Distillers Co. Ltd., Epsom, England. He also returned to school, receiving a Higher National Certificate in Electrical Engineering from Kingston Technical College. Their family grew with the addition of Alison Joan Robbins in October of 1956. John and family moved to Montreal, Canada in 1957 and lived there for 5 years while he worked for Canadian Aviation Electronics. In 1962, encouraged by his close friend from work, Tad Taylor (who remained his friend for 57 years), John took a job as an Engineer with Beckman Instruments Inc in Palo Alto, California. The family relocated for the final time to Los Altos, California where John resided for 53 years until his passing. Devotion to family and friends was one of John's strongest attributes. He cared for his wife Joan, who was afflicted with MS, for many years until her death in 1984. He was blessed with a second marriage to Virginia Jean MacCosham in 1987 and they spent 16 happy years together until Virginia succumbed to health problems in 2004. John attended Spanish and French language groups with his friends, becoming proficient in both languages. He loved driving his friends to those and other functions, when they were no longer able to drive themselves. He provided support for his children and grandchildren whenever needed. John is survived by his son and daughter, 3 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren. He became like a member of the family to both his late wife Virginia's relatives and to his caregivers, who assisted him during his last years. He will be dearly missed by all. A Celebration of Life will be held at 1:00 on June 7, 2015 at his residence. Donations can be made in memory of John F.W. Robbins to either the San Jose Chamber Music Society or the MS Society.




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