Joe Robinson

Joe Robinson

Joe Robinson passed away peacefully in the presence of family on All Saints Day, Nov. 1, 2021, in Billings.

Joseph Bernard Robinson was born in Helena on Feb. 10, 1960, to Jim and Geraldine (Sullivan) Robinson.

Joe grew up as the youngest of the seven Robinson kids in Helena, playing sports and spending his summers water skiing on Canyon Ferry Lake, and enjoying time with friends and family at the Robinson family cabin. Joe was a standout student and three-sport athlete for the Capital Bruins. After graduating from Helena Capital in 1978, Joe was recruited to play quarterback for the MSU Bobcats football team. Joe transferred to Carroll College to continue his accomplished football career, where he led the nation in interceptions at safety before moving back to quarterback. He was later inducted into the Saints Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003. Even though his game stats speak for themselves, Joe often joked that “the older you get, the better you were.” Joe graduated from Carroll in 1982 with a degree in accounting and moved to San Francisco to start his professional career.

After earning his CPA and working as an accountant in San Francisco, Joe moved back to Helena to work for Anderson ZurMuehlen. He later joined NorWest and became the youngest person in Montana to earn his CFA while also coaching college football at Carroll. While in Helena, he met the love of his life, Judy Walsh of Anaconda, who was a second grade teacher in Helena. Joe and Judy were married on June 27, 1987, at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Anaconda. Joe and Judy went on to have four wonderful children, Sean, Danny, Brianna and Mikaela, in Helena before Joe’s job moved the family to Billings, where the kids grew up and attended school.

Joe lived his life to the fullest, having both an incredibly accomplished career as a portfolio manager and always making time to be with his family. During his 35-year career with Wells Fargo, Joe often traveled throughout the Northwest to visit his clients, many of whom became friends. Joe never let his accomplished career overshadow his favorite job, though. Joe was a coach at heart and spent most of his time in gyms and on fields, coaching his four children who played basketball, football, soccer and pole vaulted, among many other sports over the years. Joe cherished his time with his kids, coaching them and watching them compete in the sports they loved. Joe and Judy traveled across the state of Montana to every possible sporting event of their children as they competed for Billings West High School and then traveled across the country as each of their four children competed at the collegiate level at the University of Montana, University of Mary, Colorado School of Mines and Carroll College.

Above all else, Joe lived a life centered around his family. The Fourth of July was a sacred holiday for Joe each year when the entire Robinson family gathered in his favorite place in the world at the family cabin on Canyon Ferry Lake. Joe could usually be found driving the boat, making endless laps to pull his kids and nieces and nephews as they waterskied, tubed, and wake surfed. Joe also made sure to get his annual slalom ski in well into his 50s and even gave it a shot at the age of 60. We will always remember him teaching each of the four of us to water ski with his famous catchphrase: “Come on, just one more time.” He was a constant force of bringing family together organizing family reunions for the Robinson-Sullivan family in Whitefish over the years, most recently this past summer. It was a great joy in Joe’s life to be close with his family and spend time with them.

Joe was a passionate and faith-driven person. He constantly pushed those around him to their fullest potential and grounded himself in his deep Catholic faith. He also pushed himself constantly finding new challenges to work towards. He was extremely proud of the strength of his marriage to his best friend, Judy, and the family that they built together. Joe and Judy were married for 34 great years. A highlight in recent years was their annual trip to Yellowstone National Park each fall now that their four children are past sports. Joe loved Judy’s sense of humor, her quick-witted responses, and her distinct laugh. He always told his kids he married her because he had never had more fun in his life until he met her. She was Joe’s fiercest advocate in the past few years of medical attention, and she was always his favorite person.

Joe was an impressive mathematician, constantly doing mental math and tutoring his children in math classes even deep into their calculus and finance classes in college. Joe also had a great sense of humor with a dry delivery. Even in the most difficult situations, after suffering from a massive ischemic stroke in 2018, Joe made dry remarks to doctors, physical therapists and nurses to bring levity to the situation. Joe was also a captivating storyteller, and his favorite story to tell was of a particular round of golf with his best friend, Steve Frankino.

In addition to being a great dad, husband and brother, Joe was also a great friend. He kept in great touch with friends from both high school and college. Joe again used his gift of bringing people together when he gathered his high school buddies a few summers ago for a weekend in Whitefish. Joe loved getting the crew back together and spoke of it regularly.

Although the pandemic brought challenges in the past year and a half, it also brought with it the blessings of great family time spent together. Joe’s kids were able to spend more time at home in the past year and a half while working remotely or attending school remotely. As empty nesters, Joe and Judy have loved having a house full of kids again even on a temporary basis while kids traveled back and forth to their current cities.

Joe was greatly loved, and he will be dearly missed.

Joe is survived by his wife Judy and their four children, Sean, Danny, Brianna and Mikaela. He is also survived by his siblings, Bob (Louise) Robinson, Tom (Pat) Robinson, Mick (Nancy) Robinson, Ed Robinson and Mary (Van) Charlton; and his in-laws Gene (Jill) Walsh, Rosemary (Mark) Semmens and Susan (Mehmet Kahraman) Walsh; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Joe is preceded in death by his parents, Jim and Geraldine Robinson; his sister, Sharon Robinson; his in-laws, Gene and Peggy Walsh; his brother in-law, John Walsh; his sister in-law, Lorelee Robinson; and his namesake uncle, Fr. Joseph P. Sullivan.

A vigil service is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9, at Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary, 1001 Alderson Ave. A funeral mass is set for 10 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 10, at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, 2055 Woody Drive.

In lieu of flowers memorials can be made to the Robinson-Sullivan Scholarship or the John Walsh Memorial Scholarship at Carroll College, Development Office, 1601 North Benton Ave., Helena, MT 59624.