Sarah F. (Curtis) Robinson,

Former         State Rep.,     Dies At 89

Sarah F. (Curtis) Robinson, formerly of Newtown, passed away peacefully on February 12 in Broomfield, Colo., just four days short of her 90th birthday. Ms Robinson had been in a care facility in Colorado near her elder son for the last two years.

She was born in Roanoke, Va., in 1914, attended St Mary’s College in Raleigh, N.C., and moved to Connecticut where she was then married to the late Nelson G. Curtis of Sandy Hook.

Ms Robinson was very active in Newtown civic affairs for many years. As a state legislator from Newtown (1954–1975), Frannie, as her friends affectionately knew her, served on a number of committees during her terms of office. She was particularly active with the Public Welfare Committee where she served as chairwoman. She also served on the 1959 Board of Selectmen for Newtown.

Other activities included serving on the Visiting Nurses Board of Directors, leading the Newtown Woman’s Club, and serving as a long-standing member of the Republican Town Committee.

Ms Robinson was an exceptionally dedicated public official and an outstanding legislator long before it was popular for women to be in politics. She was the first woman to be elected to the Connecticut State Legislature from the town of Newtown.

Ms Robinson left Newtown in 1979 to live near Atlanta, where she was remarried to the late Donald B. Robinson. She later lived in North Carolina for 15 years.

Two sons, James R. Curtis of Lafayette, Colo., and Nelson G. Curtis, Jr of Mountain View, Calif.; three grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren survive Ms Robinson.

The Newtown Bee      February 20, 2004