Julie Gail Robinson

Those who knew Julie best remember her as deeply devoted to her family, her friends and her community. She found immense joy in being surrounded by and serving those she loved.

Born to Harold (Buzz) and Clara (Deter) Hanks on June 16, 1945, Julie grew up in Deer Trail, Colorado, where all her grandparents had settled. Her grandfather, Philip Deter, homesteaded the ranch owned by her family. During her school years, Julie discovered a love for music that stayed with her for life, singing in choir from a young age and playing in the school band. She also made a lifelong best friend and “blood sister,” Carrie Thorn. Their favorite pastime was watching American Bandstand and then practicing all the new dances together.

At Deer Trail High School, she also met George Robinson, an acquaintance who was to become much more. George graduated and moved to southern California, where, as the story goes, he learned the twist. After serving abroad in the military, he returned to Colorado. Julie just happened to run into George again at a local dance. Eager to learn the twist, she asked him for a lesson and the rest, as they say is history. No one knows for sure, but those California twisting stories may have enticed Julie’s oldest son to move to the West Coast, much to her chagrin.

After graduating from Deer Trail High School and Parks Business College in Denver, Julie went on to work for Frontier Airlines for ten years. Julie and George were married in 1967 in her parents’  yard in Deer Trail. Julie and George took full advantage of the perks of her job at Frontier Airlines, first traveling to Hawaii for their honeymoon, then continuing their adventures to Hong Kong, Thailand, India, Japan, Korea, Greece, Switzerland, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Mexico and throughout the USA. A new adventure came along in the form of their two sons, and they moved back to Deer Trail to raise Shane and Dustin. The boys brought sports into her life as they played baseball, basketball and football, and Julie even kept the books for their basketball games. The family has season tickets for both the Rockies and the Broncos. Later she enjoyed watching ski events when the boys were members of the CSU ski team.

While her sons were young, Julie worked part time at the Deer Trail Post Office. Once her sons reached their teens, she became the Postmaster, a position she held for 25 years. Both sons went on to attend CSU, spending their summers as raft guides on the Arkansas River. This was how George and Julie got to know the town of Beuna Vista, Colorado. Eventually they decided to retire in the BV community they had come to love. Julie’s greatest joy was becoming a grandmother to Dusty’s three daughters Natalie, Maggie and Sabrina.

Julie enjoyed serving her community. As Postmaster, she worked in Human Resources at the Employee Development Center and served on the Diversity Team. She also served on the Youth-to-Youth task force for drug-free youth, volunteered for the I-70 Chamber of Commerce and developed and instructed an aquatic program for Morgan Community College. She also wrote and edited “Julie’s Jargon and Jabber”, a newsletter for the Colorado Postmaster Association.

In Buena Vista, she became involved with the Buena Vista Recreation Board, the 51:10 Board, the Pregnancy Center Board and others. George had become involved with the Rodeo Board when Don Hoover found out they were from the Home of the World’s First Rodeo, and Julie later joined him in that work.

Julie will be most remembered for her love for children. She was a friend, mother, grandmother and aunt to many, blood related or not. She could always be found holding a baby at gatherings or around the community. She came to know and love many children through volunteering at church, helping with AWANA, teaching swimming for Small Fries and more.

As she grew into maturity, she also grew in her faith, and she tried to spread the love of Jesus whenever possible. She often said she didn’t know where she would be without her faith, and she was so thankful for God’s many gifts in her life, especially her family, husband, children and grandchildren.

Julie is survived by her husband George Robinson. She is also survived by her children Shane Robinson (and Jennifer) and Dusty Robinson (and Ashley); granddaughters Natalie, Maggie and Sabrina; siblings Naomi (and Bob) Charvanao, John (and Margy) Hanks, Nancy (and Jack) Morris, and Margie Nordstrom; nephews and nieces; and many, many cousins.

Please make donations to First Baptist Church of Deer Trail or Valley Fellowship Church in Buena Vista.

A Memorial Gathering to honor Julie will be held on Sunday, April 28, 2024, 1:00-3:00PM at Mountain View Community Church, 2330 West Prospect Road, Fort Collins, CO 80525. 
This will be a casual get-together to celebrate and remember Julie. If you have a favorite photo to share, please bring it.

“Postal workers never die, they are just returned to sender.”

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Julie Gail Robinson, please visit our floral store.