Bruce Lorne Robinson

Bruce Robinson passed away on December 6, 2025, after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Bruce was born in February, 1939 in Port Arthur, Ontario (now Thunder Bay) to Fred And Jean Robinson (nee McArthur). His sister Mary Jean followed 5 years later. His childhood was idyllic in many ways; his father was first elected a provincial member of parliament in 1943 for the fledgling CCF party, and then in 1949 became the first mayor of Port Arthur to be born there. His mother was also politically active, elected as a city alderman and then a school trustee. Being part of a large extended family was a major part of his childhood, with McArthur grandparents a block away, and aunts, uncles, and 22 first cousins across the city.

His father would make an ice rink behind their house at 53 Elm Street and neighborhood kids would play hockey there all winter. Bruce loved sports, playing basketball and football while at high school (Port Arthur Collegiate Institute). He was a good athlete, and a natural born teacher volunteering as a leader at the YMCA during his teens. From a young age, Bruce was a good worker - first as a paperboy, and then taking summer jobs as an ironworker starting at age 16. He helped build infrastructure around Lake Superior, like the bridge over the Little Pic River, and mining bulkheads in Manitowadge.

Bruce moved to Hamilton to attend McMaster University in 1958, graduating with a degree in Philosophy and Education, and then becoming a public school teacher in the north end of Hamilton in the early 60’s. He continued to volunteer at youth drop in centres, at one point organizing local teens to run car washes to get to Expo 67. While at McMaster, he met JoAnn Robinson (nee Stretton), whom he married in 1961. Both worked as teachers in Hamilton, and their daughter Naomi was born in 1966. They divorced by 1972, but Bruce remained an active parent every weekend.

A couple years later, Bruce married Barbara Robinson ( nee Lambert), and took a new job in 1974 as elementary school principal at S.Geiger Public School in Massey, Ontario. Soon after their daughter Jessica was born in 1976. Naomi moved to live with them in Massey. Bruce embraced rural life, running a dog kennel / hobby farm with goats, rabbits, chickens, and honeybees, and had a dog sled with a team of huskies. By 1979, he’d started construction on a ’build your own house’ Viceroy home on 160 acres ~7 kms outside Massey. At that time, phone lines didn’t reach the house, and there were adventures with bears and other wildlife. Bruce and Barb separated in 1981, and he became a single dad to Jessica and Naomi. He continued to play hockey and coached Jess’s ringette team.

In 1991 Bruce traded jobs with the principal of Church Street Public School in downtown Toronto for a couple of years. By age 55, he was able to retire, and for several years ran a free clothing depot for low income families near Bloor and Dufferin. He met lots of new friends in Toronto, and would often travel to Ecuador in the winters with his Dutch friend Christopher Alberts. By the mid 90s, Bruce had a condo in Mississauga near Square One, and soon became an active grandparent to Ella, Maxine, Mason and Liam (who arrived 1999-2008). While waiting for a bus in 2006, he met Jennifer Loh and fell in love again. They lived in Mississauga together ever since, welcoming Jennifer’s daughter Melissa to live with them after she graduated university in Malaysia.

Although he never returned to live in Thunder Bay, he went back often to spend summers with family on Lake Shebandowan, and more recently visiting with his sister on Cox Crescent. Bruce battled cancer over the past decade, but his sense of humour and friendly personality carried him through. He was cherished by many friends and family for his ability to put a smile on their face even in tough times, and for his philosophical approach to life. As someone who spent decades teaching kids, we can all learn from his example how to face challenges with humour. In lieu of donations the family requests you perform an act of kindness in Bruce’s memory, and be kind to one another.