Asheville Pays Tribute to Henry Robinson
by Johnnie Grant –
Native Ashevillean, historian, and community leader Henry “Hank” Robinson passed away at his home in Greensboro, NC on Sept. 29, 2014.
He was the son of the late John and Mary Jenkins Robinson of Asheville, and is survived by his wife, Sandra Harrison-Robinson, sister Lela M. Johnson, daughter Kameelah Robinson, six sons, Jamal, Reginald, Tony, Alex, Frederick, and Keith; 13 grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.
Henry Robinson was a graduate of Stephens-Lee High School, where he lettered in football and graduated as a “Superlative” with the Class of 1955. He was an Airman 1st Class in the U.S. Air Force. During his military service he attended Texas Christian University in Ft. Worth and Little Rock University in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Robinson was well known in Asheville and western North Carolina as a journalist, historian, innovator, and civic leader. Much of his professional career was as the first African American journalist and photographer with the Asheville Citizen-Times (1969-1999); he was the first African American journalist in western North Carolina.
Like many of his colleagues at the Citizen-Times, Henry began as a general assignment reporter covering the law enforcement crime scenes beat, and later became both a feature writer and photojournalist, as well as an established columnist. Henry mentored many of the new journalists and became the paper’s first religion editor, in which role he was the first African American editor of such a major segment of the newsroom. Henry had a dedicated readership for his religion columns, and many people looked forward to his uplifting spiritual stories. His son Reginald chuckles as he fondly recalls the family affectionately referring to his dad as “King Henry” when he advised family, friends, and youth with his religious references, charismatic teachings, and parables.
In 1983 Henry was honored for his columns by the North Carolina Press Association, and a second honor was bestowed on him for “best column writer.” At his retirement, the Hillcrest High Steppers Drum and Majorette Corps paraded through the second-floor newsroom in his honor.
Henry coached Little League in north Asheville, and as president of Randolph Elementary School PTA he established the first fifth-grade graduation at the school so students would get an idea of what it was to be successful in academics and to graduate from a school—which led those Randolph students to achieve a 98% graduation rate from Asheville High School. That fifth-grade class, which included his son Reginald, was the first integrated class to move through the school system of Asheville City Schools together.
Henry’s interest in education was also reflected in his own teaching activities and community engagement aimed at local students who were interested in journalism. He taught both writing and photography to such youth as Rev Otis Ware who started his photography business on Lexington Avenue, and Pete McDaniels, among others. McDaniels, who first worked at the Hendersonville Times-News, is currently a writer for Golf Digest—and recently penned a book about Tiger Woods. Henry also wrote about and photographed Asheville High’s football players for the Asheville Citizen Times and the Asheville City School System, and he originated the “Wednesday Night Supper” which supported the Asheville City Schools athletic programs for more than 25 years.
Henry was an avid student of Buncombe County history and was considered an authority on the history of African Americans in Western North Carolina. Recently, he co-founded, with Deborah Smith, the Western North Carolina Association for the Preservation of African American History, and was a frequent public speaker as well as go-to specialist for information about the subject.
An avid community leader, Henry was the founder and charter president of the Central Asheville Optimist Club (the first predominantly African American Optimist Club in North Carolina), and founder and president of the Chamber of Echoes, Asheville’s first community awards program for African Americans. He served as president of the advisory board of the NC Juvenile Evaluation Center, on the advisory board of Asheville Parks and Recreation Department, and as a member of the NC Press Association.
Reverend Dr. L. C. Ray, who grew up with Henry, recalls, “Henry was always a genuine person and very intentional with regard to his family, career, and personal endeavors. He was a caring and no-nonsense man. He had a love and appreciation for the history of African Americans in western North Carolina and people who grew up here in Asheville. That’s very important.”
At the time of his death, he was chairman of the Outreach Ministry at Tried Stone Missionary Baptist Church, where he previously served as a member of the deacon board ministry, the trustee board ministry, and as president of the Laymen League.
