Robin's Nan and I were fortunate in that we lived close to him and were therefore priviledged to assist in much of his home and school life.
We knew that he would want this occasion to be fairly informal and therefore some of the lighter moments should also be addressed.
We first became aware of how active he could be at bathtime when he would kick and splash like Paddington Bear. When a wet spot soon appeared on the ceiling below,it was decided prompt action was necessary and the floor & wall surronding the bath were painted with a black waterproof tarry substance which remains underneath to this day.
Fireman Sam was one of his early heroes and we had to pull down the loft ladder to enable him to emulate Sam. He was often followed up by our ginger cat. getting Robin down was much easier than the cat who dissappeared into the hidden corners. He also loved playing with the garden water hose and drenching us all in the process.
He was interested in football at an early age and even at the age of 5 or 6 he could kick the ball harder and further than I expected. One day we were kicking the ball to one another at Fryern Rec. I had retreated to what I considered a safe distance when suddenly the ball hit me full in the face and broke my glasses. We had to suspecd the game and he had to lead his short sighted Grandad safely home.
With his love of animals, his interest later turned to owning a hamster and he and Sara each had one. He decided that "Hammy" should enjoy a better quality of life and made continuous extentions connected with tunnels. These improvements were also reflected in his own bedroom accomodation which was continually being changed to cater for sleepovers and hi fi systems
He also liked making Airfix models,
In more recent years he would join us with Sara, for occasional trips to the IOW. He enjoyed trying out the inflatable rib with outboard. On one occasion we sat him in the correct middle position, but when out of our sight he rearranged himself so that on his return he was sitting further back and the bow was well out of the water. We thought it had developed a leak due to the amount of water inside, but this proved incorrect. He also enjoyed a laugh when nan fell in the water with all her clothes on.
Robin preferred to be practical rather than studious and was easy going by nature. We know from reading the many tributes to him and Pete on the website, how well they were both liked and we thank you all for your fantistic support.
We thank Andrew for stopping to help and also wish Gemma a speedy recovery.
May God grant us his peace.
Amen.