Memorial services for William J. Robinson, 86, of Lompoc, CA will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, October 6, 2012 at the Starbuck-Lind Chapel with Pastor Gilbert Stones of First United Methodist Church officiating. Private inurnment will be at Porterville District Cemetery.

As dawn was breaking the morning of September 29th all the saints in heaven were rejoicing as Mr. Robinson entered into the presence of his Lord and Savior. He was a good and faithful servant to his God, his country, his family, his friends, and anyone he met in need.

Mr. Robinson was born September 11, 1926 in Powersville, MO to William S. Robinson and Ella M. Farnsworth Robinson. He is a veteran of WWII and the Korean War. At the age of 17 he enlisted in the US Navy and was stationed at a supply depot in the Admiralty Islands during WWII. After two years he was discharged from the Navy but a few years later the Korean War began and he reenlisted and was assigned to the USS Philip, a destroyer that had been converted for submarine warfare. When he was discharged he became a baker and owned and operated the Blue Ribbon Bakery in Roundup, MT.

In 1960 he changed careers and received an appointment to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. His first assignment was in Lompoc, CA. where he was a guard. Throughout his 20 year career he had many assignments around the United States and many promotions in the Bureau of Prisons. In 1980 he retired as the Food Administrator at Terminal Island in Long Beach, CA.

While he was stationed in Lompoc, he and his late wife were instrumental in the formation of LOVARC (Life Options Vocational and Resource Center). He and his late wife were charter members and served as the first co-presidents of this service organization that is still serving citizens of Lompoc nearly 50 years later.

After his retirement in 1980 he and his wife moved to Porterville, CA where he served in many leadership roles at Grand Avenue Methodist Church. He and his wife also answered the call from UMCOR (United Methodist Committee On Relief) and sponsored a political refugee family from Poland. As political refugees the parents could not return to Poland and after several years their children desperately wanted to see their family in Poland. Without any hesitation Bill and his wife began making plans to take the children to Poland to ensure that they could maintain and strengthen their family ties in Poland. He believed a strong family foundation is essential for every child.

In Porterville Bill put his food service knowledge to work and volunteered at Helping Hands, cooking meals for the hungry several times a week. When he wasn't cooking he was active in the Gleaners Group going into the orchards after the harvest and gleaning fruits and nuts which were donated to the local Food Pantry or used for meals at Helping Hands. Bill loved to bake and as soon as his granddaughters and great granddaughter could stand on a step stool at the kitchen counter he was teaching them how to bake.

In May of 1996 Bill returned to Lompoc with his wife to be near her doctors in Santa Barbara. He spent the next 18 months lovingly caring for her. After her death in 1997 he became active in many community groups and Veteran organizations. He especially enjoyed his daily treks on his electric scooter to Santa Barbara Bank and Trust where he and several friends met for coffee, swapped war stories, and discussed current events.

He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Ella Robinson; his wife of 50 years, Mary Ellen Cunningham Robinson; his sisters, Twyla Robinson Tausch and Mary Ann Robinson Bolton; and his son, William Philip Robinson.

He is survived by his daughters, Phyllis Robinson Engelbosch (John) of Lompoc, CA and Cynthia Bosen of Maywood, CA. His grandchildren, Kristin Engelbosch Heberling (Jerry) of Santa Cruz, CA; Kimberly Engelbosch Reid (Tony) of Elgin, SC and David Callahan of Ventura, CA. His great grandchildren, Rebecca Heberling, Quinton Reid and John Reid. His sisters, Wanda Goeken of San Diego, CA; Judy Van Dyke of Roundup, MT; Joy (Pat) Frank of Wickenberg, AZ and Linda King of Coos Bay, OR and his brother Samuel Robinson (Judy) of Rockwall, TX; numerous nieces and nephews and his special friend and companion, Cheryl Martin of Lompoc, CA.

In his final hours, as he was transitioning from this life to the next, he uttered his final witness to his faith, and his gift of comfort to those he left behind…. "Well howdy! I've come to spend eternity with you."

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations in honor of William J. Robinson be made to the General Endowment Fund of the First United Methodist Church Foundation, 925 North "F" Street Lompoc, CA.

Local arrangements are directed by Starbuck-Lind Mortuary