Remembering Paul Robinson
In 2008, Neil Gilliland penned the following tribute to veteran missionaries Paul and Amy Robinson for ONE Magazine. Today, in light of Paul’s passing, Neil’s words seem to hold special meaning.
Every July, Thousands of people crowd into the Smithville, Tennessee, town square to hear the sounds of banjos, mandolins, and fiddles and watch cloggers and flat-footers dance to old mountain melodies. On a quiet side street, just off the main thoroughfare leading into town, is a modest house that blends in with all the others on the street. No historical markers or signs honor Paul and Amy Robinson, the couple who lives there.
The truth is, while their house sits on that quiet street, their home is in another small town much further south. Rivera, not unlike Smithville, has a town square—the Plaza Internacional. Sitting on the border of Brazil and Uruguay, Rivera is Paul and Amy’s real home. A return visit several years after their retirement prompted them to write exultantly, “Home again! Yes, back ‘home’ after 10 years.” They were greeted with a three-hour grand benevenida (welcome) with music, hugs, kisses, tears of joy, and speeches from their old friends. You see, it was in Rivera that they, along with their children Ken and Rebecca, spent the better part of 30 years ministering the love of Christ to the people who embraced them.
When Paul and Amy left the mission field, they returned to Smithville near Paul’s birthplace. They are actively involved in the First Free Will Baptist Church of Smithville. For a number of years the energetic couple was involved in Hispanic ministry through their church. Currently, most of their ministry to Spanish speakers is one-on-one, and they refer their new friends to Hispanic churches in the area. Amy also teaches English as a second language. Their son Ken also lives in Tennessee, a few hours from where Paul grew up. Rebecca lives in Michigan—near Amy’s roots.
If you happen to be in Smithville when the Jamboree cranks up and find that little side street, spend a few minutes with one of the most genuine men in the world and one classiest ladies God ever created. Paul may not play a tune on the banjo, but he will entertain and bless you with marvelous stories from “back home” in Uruguay. Amy may not clog for you, but she will make your heart dance for joy as she tells you of the people into whom they poured their lives.
Page three of the October 1960 Foreign Mission Board minutes records these words: Interview with Paul Robinsons and Bill Fulchers—Motion sustained that these candidates be approved for Uruguay. One simple sentence—a sentence that impacted thousands of lives from Smithville to Rivera, and all stops between.
About the Writer: Neil Gilliland, Ph.D., is director of member care for IM, Inc. Read more about Free Will Baptist work in Uruguay.
Reprinted from the February-March 2008 issue of ONE Magazine. For coming details about funeral arrangements, visit www.fwbgo.com. Quotes taken from Heartbeat, vol. 43, no. 6, Nov/Dec 2003, page 6. Pictures from Into the Darkness, the 75-year history of Free Will Baptist International Missions.
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