Hugh P. Robinson ’48 died on October 22, 2025, in Falmouth, Maine.
(The following was provided by Portland Press Herald in October 26, 2025:)
Hugh P. Robinson ’48
Falmouth – Hugh “Rob”, “Pa” Payson Robinson of Falmouth, passed away peacefully on October 22, 2025, at the age of 97.
A true Mainer, he was dearly loved by his many family members and friends and could not imagine living anywhere else. Handsome and humble, known for his cheery smile and authentic interest in others, he had a way of making others feel special, whether just meeting them or having known them for years.
Born in 1928, Hugh grew up in Portland, and later moved with his four sisters to Falmouth into the house his parents built. He attended Deering High School (reportedly riding his bike or hitchhiking into Portland every day) and later graduated from Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire. He attended Bowdoin College at the age of 16, left to join the U.S. Navy for two years, then returned to graduate in 1949. He attended University of Rochester Medical School in Rochester, NY, where he met Patricia “Patty” Volles, to whom he was married for sixty-eight years until her passing in 2019.
After graduating from medical school, he trained at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The family moved back to Falmouth in 1958, and Hugh began his professional career as a urologist in Portland. For the next thirty-five years he practiced medicine at Maine Medical Center and hospitals in Bridgton, Norway, and Farmington, in keeping with his desire to serve the broader communities and his love of traveling the state. He spent his retirement enjoying the outdoors, spending time with his children and grandchildren, and devoting his time to Patty.
Hugh enjoyed family, friends, patients, colleagues, and generally anyone he met. He was a loyal Red Sox and Patriots fan and loved attending crew races and soccer, lacrosse and baseball games (among others) of his children and grandchildren who lovingly called him “Pa.” Winters were spent at Sugarloaf, cross-country and downhill skiing as part of a group of families from the Portland area. In the summers he enjoyed hiking New England peaks, playing in his woodlot, and sailing the Maine coast. Throughout his adulthood, he had a revolving collection of cruising boats, power craft, sailboats and rowing shells, and he loved splicing rope, messing around with moorings, and painting his signature “HPR” on all things floatable. A prolific tree planter, he leaves behind many testaments to his arboreal devotion and dedication to thorough watering. Also, an ardent photographer, he built a vast photography catalogue that tells the story of his life and those around him.
In addition to his wife Patty, Hugh was predeceased by daughter, Susan, in 2022 and son-in-law, Keith Heard, in 2025.
He is survived by Susan’s children, Stuart Tisdale, his wife, Jade, and their two children, and Sarah Tisdale; daughter Martha Robinson Heard and her children, Anna Heard and her husband, Alex, and John Heard and his wife, Damla; son, William Robinson and his wife, Lissa, and their children Will and Elias Robinson; and son, Peter Robinson and his wife, Janet, and their children Isabel and husband, Christian, and Annie Robinson.
Hugh’s family is grateful for the kindness of his longtime caregiver Shella, and the support of the staff at Bay Square in Yarmouth. We are all blessed to have had him in our lives for so long.