Senatorial candidate Chris Robinson, his wife Carol and their dog Annabelle reside in Trappe.
Candidate's Wife is Politically Involved
Carol Robinson shares the tale of the road to her husband's candidacy
By Susan M. Bautz
Special to The Banner
EASTERN SHORE - While not eager to campaign for political office herself, Carol Robinson, wife of democratic candidate for State Senator, Chris Robinson, comes from a family deeply interested in politics.
"My father's side of the family were strong Democrats and my mother's side were strong Republican and we always dis cussed politics or current events at dinner", Mrs. Robinson said. "People had strong feelings and we were encouraged to ex press our view and back it up - defend it. If you didn't like a law, don't break it, try to change it."
Voting was imperative for her family and she says she has voted in every elec tion since she came of age. She practiced in a sample booth that stood next to the curtained, lever-pulls official booths.
Both Robinsons come from families that believe public service is honorable.
"It can be transforming and that's why I really am excited." She added, "Because Chris and I believe in the same things - that government can bring good things into people's lives."
Mrs. Robinson, a Michigan native, graduated from the state university with a passionate interest in politics and working on Capitol Hill. In 1981, U-Haul in tow, she moved to Alexandria "to the smallest efficiency apartment I've ever seen" to accept a job with former Congressman Bob Rowe, chairman of the house transportation committee. She subsequently spent two years in then Congressman Roy Dyson's (Maryland) office and met her future husband who worked in the same office. After several Hill employers she became a Legislative Director.
"We both enjoy politics", she said." We both appreciate what this fine country has to offer and we believe in it and contribute and try to make the system work for everyone."
"I'm part of the new trend of working out of my house. I love it," said Mrs. Robinson, who enjoys working in her robe instead of driving to an office. "My husband will work from sun-up to sun-down, and this gives me time to work with my notes." Although no longer working in Washington, DC, this candidate's wife is still very involved in the national and international scene. She works for a software company that sells tax software to national and international corporations so they can comply with their administrative requirements. "One of the things that attracted them to me," she noted, "was my understanding of how Congress works." She sees herself as a "political gauge for them" as she identifies trends so the company can change its software accordingly. " They might ask me 'are they really going to make changes; what will the requirements be?' Then their technical people can focus in on some of the changes."
She is a member of the technical advisory group for the Organization of Economic and Corporate Development (OECD). The organization, headquartered in Paris, represents the industrialized nations of the world as each country adopts and passes its own laws. Mrs. Robinson travels to Europe occasionally and to Philadelphia where her employer is located.
Chris Robinson has practiced law in Cambridge for the past 15 years.
"We rented in Cambridge for 12 years and had a home on the western shore," she said. They looked "long and hard for something in Dorchester County." But the home they found in Trappe six years ago was "the one."
Situated on eight acres, she said, "I've never lived in the country before. We both grew up in the suburbs. So we wake up to deer, and fox, and geese - that's what we hear. We don't hear what you hear in the city or the suburbs. I mean, they're all animal noises. And Annabelle doesn't need a leash out there and we go for walks. It's among the best the Eastern Shore has to offer."
"I really do think if anyone can help Cambridge be what it can be it's Chris."
~ Carol Robinson
The Robinsons share fervor for a clean environment. Mrs. Robinson noted that "every major industry here on the Eastern Shore relies on a healthy environment. How can you talk about jobs and economic development and not connect that with a healthy environment and the need for smart planning?" She adds that all the major industries - farming, fishing, sporting and tourism - "rely on the beauty and unique natural resources and the rural heritage we have here. Talking jobs and economic development is talking a healthy environment and I think they go hand in hand". She says that "Chris was instrumental in drafting one of the first bills to clean up the Chesapeake Bay when he was working with Congressman Dyson. That went a long way towards starting the process." Now both the candidate and his wife feel that a "united front of these various industries and interests" are necessary to move a plan forward.
Mrs. Robinson also supports her husband's vision for Cambridge and his interest in being a "transforming figure here." She pointed to a wood sign above the doorway in the Race Street law office and read "If you dream it, you can do it." She is passionate about her husband's ability to build consensus, get others excited about a goal, and said, "I really do think if anyone can help Cambridge be what it can be it's Chris."
The little girl from Michigan who cast her ballots in a miniature voting booth with her parents grew into a bright young woman who feels deeply about improving the world around her. She emphatically believes that her husband is the man to do it.
Copyright © 2010 Independent Newspapers, Inc. All rights reserved. 10/22/2010
Special to The Banner
EASTERN SHORE - While not eager to campaign for political office herself, Carol Robinson, wife of democratic candidate for State Senator, Chris Robinson, comes from a family deeply interested in politics.
"My father's side of the family were strong Democrats and my mother's side were strong Republican and we always dis cussed politics or current events at dinner", Mrs. Robinson said. "People had strong feelings and we were encouraged to ex press our view and back it up - defend it. If you didn't like a law, don't break it, try to change it."
Voting was imperative for her family and she says she has voted in every elec tion since she came of age. She practiced in a sample booth that stood next to the curtained, lever-pulls official booths.
Both Robinsons come from families that believe public service is honorable.
"It can be transforming and that's why I really am excited." She added, "Because Chris and I believe in the same things - that government can bring good things into people's lives."
Mrs. Robinson, a Michigan native, graduated from the state university with a passionate interest in politics and working on Capitol Hill. In 1981, U-Haul in tow, she moved to Alexandria "to the smallest efficiency apartment I've ever seen" to accept a job with former Congressman Bob Rowe, chairman of the house transportation committee. She subsequently spent two years in then Congressman Roy Dyson's (Maryland) office and met her future husband who worked in the same office. After several Hill employers she became a Legislative Director.
"We both enjoy politics", she said." We both appreciate what this fine country has to offer and we believe in it and contribute and try to make the system work for everyone."
"I'm part of the new trend of working out of my house. I love it," said Mrs. Robinson, who enjoys working in her robe instead of driving to an office. "My husband will work from sun-up to sun-down, and this gives me time to work with my notes." Although no longer working in Washington, DC, this candidate's wife is still very involved in the national and international scene. She works for a software company that sells tax software to national and international corporations so they can comply with their administrative requirements. "One of the things that attracted them to me," she noted, "was my understanding of how Congress works." She sees herself as a "political gauge for them" as she identifies trends so the company can change its software accordingly. " They might ask me 'are they really going to make changes; what will the requirements be?' Then their technical people can focus in on some of the changes."
She is a member of the technical advisory group for the Organization of Economic and Corporate Development (OECD). The organization, headquartered in Paris, represents the industrialized nations of the world as each country adopts and passes its own laws. Mrs. Robinson travels to Europe occasionally and to Philadelphia where her employer is located.
Chris Robinson has practiced law in Cambridge for the past 15 years.
"We rented in Cambridge for 12 years and had a home on the western shore," she said. They looked "long and hard for something in Dorchester County." But the home they found in Trappe six years ago was "the one."
Situated on eight acres, she said, "I've never lived in the country before. We both grew up in the suburbs. So we wake up to deer, and fox, and geese - that's what we hear. We don't hear what you hear in the city or the suburbs. I mean, they're all animal noises. And Annabelle doesn't need a leash out there and we go for walks. It's among the best the Eastern Shore has to offer."
"I really do think if anyone can help Cambridge be what it can be it's Chris."
~ Carol Robinson
The Robinsons share fervor for a clean environment. Mrs. Robinson noted that "every major industry here on the Eastern Shore relies on a healthy environment. How can you talk about jobs and economic development and not connect that with a healthy environment and the need for smart planning?" She adds that all the major industries - farming, fishing, sporting and tourism - "rely on the beauty and unique natural resources and the rural heritage we have here. Talking jobs and economic development is talking a healthy environment and I think they go hand in hand". She says that "Chris was instrumental in drafting one of the first bills to clean up the Chesapeake Bay when he was working with Congressman Dyson. That went a long way towards starting the process." Now both the candidate and his wife feel that a "united front of these various industries and interests" are necessary to move a plan forward.
Mrs. Robinson also supports her husband's vision for Cambridge and his interest in being a "transforming figure here." She pointed to a wood sign above the doorway in the Race Street law office and read "If you dream it, you can do it." She is passionate about her husband's ability to build consensus, get others excited about a goal, and said, "I really do think if anyone can help Cambridge be what it can be it's Chris."
The little girl from Michigan who cast her ballots in a miniature voting booth with her parents grew into a bright young woman who feels deeply about improving the world around her. She emphatically believes that her husband is the man to do it.
Copyright © 2010 Independent Newspapers, Inc. All rights reserved. 10/22/2010