GAY ELIZABETH ROBINSON

A Memorial Mass is planned for Gay Elizabeth Robinson at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 12300 Reina Road, Bakersfield, CA on January 27, 2023 at 11:00, preceded by the recitation of the Holy Rosary at 10:30.

Gay was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma where her father began a sales job with White King Soap, America’s first granulated laundry detergent that rolled off the production line after World War I.

The family eventually moved back to Bakersfield with Gay’s three siblings to live near her grandparents. She attended Kern County Union High School (now Bakersfield High School) where she met her husband, Don. They were married in 1948. Don’s parents farmed acreage in the Olive Drive area, where Don and Gay eventually purchased land on the corner of Olive Drive and Fruitvale Avenue and began a life of farming cotton and alfalfa. In 2018, Gay was preceded in death by Don, her husband of 70 years. She is survived by three of their four children: Greg Robinson and wife Carolyn; Leslie Robinson Hardt, Bruce Robinson and wife Jana. Brent Robinson preceded Gay and Don in death in 2003, with widow Barbara Robinson surviving. Twelve grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren include: Amy Hardt, and Sophie and Lennox; Brian and Brook Hardt, and Hailey; Christina and Eric Shoup, and Sydney, Ryan, and Ben; David and Amie Hardt, and Jacob and Taylor; Chris Robinson; Matt and Nicky Robinson and Riley; Alex Robinson; and Amanda and Andrew Fleming. Gay is also survived by her two sisters: Janice King and Virginia O’Donnell and numerous nieces and nephews.

Gay lived the typical life of a farmer’s wife that included long days of tending the children, tending the hearth and home, and tending the garden. Gay found an outlet of playing bridge with other Norris community women that became a lifelong love as she played in many bridge groups throughout her life. She volunteered for Mercy Hospital for 23 years as part of the Women’s Auxiliary. Gay was active with the Norris School Community Club and was a member of the Kern County Cotton Wives. She and Don passed on their deep faith in God to their four children and provided service in so many ways to local Catholic church parishes to which they belonged. A seamstress extraordinaire, an amazing cook and baker, an accomplice in crafting and painting wood pieces that Don made, they rounded out their full life by traveling in their RV throughout the United States as well as international travel, finally settling down with frequent and lengthy RV stays in Pismo Beach. Her family and friends carry such loving memories of Gay’s involvement in their lives, which also include her handwritten notes, cards, letters, and stories that she shared in her exquisitely beautiful penmanship.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church Building Fund, 12300 Reina Road, Bakersfield, CA 93312; and Hoffmann Hospice where Gay received such extraordinary and loving care, 4325 Buena Vista Road, Bakersfield, CA 93311.