Suzanne Lynne Robbins

Suzanne Lynne Robbins (nee MacKay) of Centennial, Colorado quietly entered eternal rest with Jesus on May 30, 2024.  Suzanne was born on December 28, 1943 to Rev. H. Leslie and Marion MacKay in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Suzanne (Sue), a compassionate, servant-hearted, gifted teacher and life-long follower of Jesus tenaciously faced life’s challenges with deep questions, fervent intercession, wisdom and a good dose of humor --seasoned with her signature infectious laughter. Sue is survived by her two sons Craig and Curtis J.; daughters-in-law Allyson and Marie; and eight grandchildren she deeply cherished Curtis W., Caroline, Catie, Jack, Paxton, Marion, Alida and Theo. She is also survived by her brothers Donald and William, and a host of loving in-laws, nieces and nephews.  Sue is preceded in death by her loving husband, Randy, her sister Joanne Skinner, and sibling in-laws Judy Street and Gary Robbins.

Growing up, Sue was the third of four children. Because her father was a minister in the Church of the Nazarene, Sue’s family moved every four years, from Pennsylvania to Ohio to Michigan, where she graduated from Ferndale High School near Detroit, MI.

Sue received her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Olivet Nazarene College. While at Olivet she met G. Randall (Randy) Robbins, who became her lifelong love. Sue and Randy married on August 8, 1964. The young couple began teaching careers in Mason, Michigan before moving to the suburbs of Detroit, where Sue became a 6^th grade teacher at Lone Pine Elementary School in Bloomfield Hills School District. Sue taught at Lone Pine for 34 years. For many of these years, Sue tutored children from under resourced communities in Pontiac, Michigan.

Later in her career, Sue acquired a Masters of Arts Degree in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) from Eastern Michigan University. She used what she learned to develop a Newcomer program for Bloomfield Hills Schools and she taught over 200 children from around the world in her last 8 years of public teaching.

After retirement, Sue and Randy moved to Colorado to be closer to their grandchildren. Because of her love for her grandchildren and for ice cream, she was given the name “Grandma Soft-Serve”. Here, Sue continued her vocation of teaching by running a small preschool classroom in her basement where she taught 7 of her 8 grandchildren along with several other “precious young ones.” She also tutored neighborhood children as well as students at a nearby school. During the pandemic, Sue taught ESL virtually to refugee Yezidis children in Kurdistan, Iraq.

In her later years, Sue took up a childhood dream of playing the clarinet. Her devoted husband bought her a top-of-the-line brand new clarinet. Sue took private lessons, played in the Smoky Hill Community Band, and even went on a European Tour with the band in 2013.

Beyond her faithful marriage of 58 years and steadfast love for her children and grandchildren, Sue was a loyal friend to many, extending care and immense generosity to everyone in her life. She “reverently and worshipfully feared the Lord” and all who had the gift of knowing her “rise up and call her blessed” (Proverbs 31).

A Memorial Service will take place on Saturday, June 15^th at 11 am, with a viewing at 10am at Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church at 10150 East Belleview Avenue, Englewood, Colorado. The family requests those who are willing and able, make a donation in Sue’s honor to Kids Hope USA, a mentoring program where students develop transformative relationships with an additional caring and consistent adult, empowering them to thrive.