On Aug. 27, Eddie Robinson and David Engleberg were at dinner in Cherry Creek, where a stream of well-wishers dropped by their table to say hello.
A few tables away, a couple took notice. The two were about to leave the restaurant when the couple, too, stopped at the table, where a man quipped to Robinson, “You must know everyone in this town.”
The gentleman then asked Robinson what he did for a living.
“Eddie looked at me and smiled,” said Engleberg. “He got that twinkle in his eye and said proudly, ‘I am a milkman.’”
Four days later, Robinson died, at the age of 93, leaving a legacy as “a milkman” — and much more.
“We are here today to mourn the passing of a man who needs almost no introduction,” said Rabbi Elizabeth Sacks during Robinson’s Sept. 3 funeral service at Temple Emanuel.
“A man who so defines and is defined by our community, and in fact the entire state of Colorado, that we come here today, across so many groups of people,” said Sacks.
“We think about how dear and precious Colorado was to Eddie — his one and only home — the place where his heart really lived.”
Robinson, a fourth-generation native of Denver, was born in 1932. He graduated from East High School and attended Colorado A&M College (now Colorado State University) and received a bachelor’s degree in agriculture in 1954.
Robinson then served in the US Army, mostly on active duty in Germany. After being discharged, he began his career in the family dairy business, and with his brother Dick built up Denver’s Robinson Dairy.
With their business, civic, charitable and political activities in Denver, the brothers earned a place in the Colorado Business Hall of Fame. Eddie Robinson served on 33 boards and commissions.
He was a director emeritus of the Colorado Restaurant Assn. and past board member of both Metro State College of Denver and the Colorado Commission of Higher Education.
Until his death, Robinson served as a lifetime member and past chair of the Denver Zoological Foundation, the Denver Metro Convention and Visitor’s Bureau (Visit Denver) and National Jewish Health and Research Center (now National Jewish Health).
Robinson was also a past chair of the St. Joseph Hospital Foundation.
He served on the board of Central Bank Denver and subsequently on the US Bank Local (Colorado National Bank) advisory board.
Alongside his brother Dick Robinson, Eddie received over 35 community and civic recognitions and awards, including the Citizen of the West Award in 2009, and the Arthur B. Lorber Award for Distinguished Service from National Jewish Health in 2024.
“It is the highest award that we have at National Jewish,” Dr. Michael Salem, president and CEO of National Jewish Health, told the IJN. “You could think of no more worthy person to receive that award. Eddie was a board member for 50 years.
“And after getting that award, you want to know what Eddie was most worried about?” said Salem. “Eddie was most worried about whether he was worthy.
“Eddie’s philanthropy was consistent with Eddie’s personality, with Eddie’s grace, with Eddie’s integrity, with Eddie’s involvement with many organizations around Colorado.
“Not only was he involved philanthropically, he was involved with the day-to-day operations and strategy.
“In my view, he is irreplaceable.”
Robinson was also awarded the Richard P. Ayers Award for Distinguished Service from the Colorado Restaurant Assn. in 1977.
“Eddie and his brother Dick meant a great deal to the restaurant and hospitality community in Colorado,” Peter Meersman, former CEO of the Colorado Restaurant Assn., told the IJN.
“Eddie was a dedicated member of the Colorado Restaurant Association board of directors for years. In 1997 he was the person of the year for our industry.”
Shortly after his death, Robinson’s family said in a statement:
“He was kind, with a great sense of humor and always a willingness to offer good ideas and support.
“He knew everyone in the room and they knew him. He was a devoted friend and a kind soul who cared deeply for his family and his community.”
At Robinson’s funeral, his daughter Debra Robinson summed up her father’s character:
“My very first memory of my dad is one that has stayed with me all my life,” she said. “I was just a little girl and we had gone to the hardware store where I helped myself to a piece of bubble gum, thinking it was for anyone to take. I think I was five years old.
“When we got home, my dad noticed I had taken something that was not mine and that we needed to make this right. He took my hand and he brought me back to the store to apologize and to pay for that small piece of gum.
“At that time I did not fully understand the lesson, but as I grew older I realized that in that moment my father was teaching me one of the most important values he carried throughout his life: integrity.”
Robinson’s youngest daughter, Emily Gorelik, said:
“I am the milkman’s daughter. I realized at an early age that this was something special. There was nowhere I could go in Denver where people did not know my dad.”
Rabbi Steven Foster eulogized Robinson at the funeral: “Even though Eddie was 93, his death came so suddenly to all of us.
“In some ways we thought Dick and Eddie would live forever. This suddenness makes it difficult for everyone.”
Engleberg, who first met Robinson in 1992, summed up his friend: “He was the kind of a guy who wished everybody the best,” Engleberg told the IJN.
“He hoped everybody could succeed at what they were doing. He was just that kind of guy.
“He was very humble, and he was kind of a running joke when he said he was just a milkman.
“He was a little bit more than that.”
Robinson was predeceased by his daughter, Patti Robinson Kaufmann. Patti’s husband, Steven Kaufmann, spoke at the funeral.
“As firm as Eddie was in business, he was a very kind and gentle soul. He did not like conflict; he was a very sweet man.”
Kaufmann relayed a long-told family story of Robinson during a trip to San Francisco.
“He was out walking, and encountered a panhandler, asking for money for a cup of coffee. Eddie dropped the bags he was carrying, dug into his pocket for his large and overstuffed wallet, and gave the panhandler a ten dollar bill. The panhandler thanked Eddie profusely and said, ‘thanks, mister, might you have another ten dollar bill for another cup of coffee?’
“Eddie’s response,” said Kaufmann: “‘Too much coffee isn’t good for you.’”
Survivors are Robinson’s wife Susan; daughters Debra (Jon Duvall) Robinson and Emily (Steve) Gorelik; step-children Missy Geller, Gregory Geller and Jeffrey (Gina) Geller; grandchildren Sam (Ariella) Gorelik, Zoe Gorelik, Jacob (Chantal) Stone; step-grandchildren Jack Geller, Tatum Geller, Frankie Sharman, Jacob Duvall and Jonah Duvall; great-grandchildren Dominic Stone, Norah Stone and Scottie Ann Gorelik; and brother Dick (Marcia) Robinson.
Contributions may be made to National Jewish Health, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Denver Light the Night, or Temple Emanuel.
© IJN 2025
