In Memoriam Robin Toner

I too had the pleasure of knowing Robin at Syracuse University and also as one of her roommates in Washington, DC after graduation. From the day I met her she talked about being a reporter for either Time magazine or the New York Times. While it is common for such lofty ambition to elicit comments cautioning against the difficulty of achieving such success, we all accepted her success as inevitable. In fact, I never heard anyone question the fact that Robin would rise to the top of her profession. After graduation she joined me in Washington, DC. We had a couple of hundred dollars and no connections. Robin went door-to-door in the Old National Press Building for an entire day and soon landed a job as a reporter for a newsletter. And of course, the next year she was off to West Virgina to begin her distinguished career as a newspaper reporter. Her going-away gift to me was a complimentary subscription to the Charleston Daily Mail (no online papers in those days). As I recall, she had an article every day. I have fond memories of Robin at school and in our early days in Washington but the memory that I carry closest to my heart at this time is from the last time I saw her. I visited Robin 3 years ago and met Peter and the kids for the first time. As I sat in their living room getting to know Peter, Robin was upstairs giving the twins a bath. Happy sounds of laughter and chatter and a comfortable bedtime routine trickled down as background noise. She was genuinely and undeniably happy.

Bonnie Benhayon of MA 9:46AM December 17, 2008