John R. Robinson '22
Senior Commodore Jack Robinson ’22 passed away on Wednesday evening, February 2nd, 2022. Jack had been battling osteo sarcoma for the past 11 years and his entire Cornell career.
“Jack grew up just outside of Boston MA, and attended Milton Academy. He was introduced to rowing at CRI in Boston. There he became a star cox, helping them to medal at nationals several times. He was the captain and a major award winner for his contributions to the team. He was part of the JR National Team Selection camp. I first met him in the summer of 2017. My first memory of Jack was him touring Cornell and meeting me at the boathouse. He was really tall for a cox, and I was concerned about him outgrowing the position. I mentioned this to him, and I can still remember his curt quick response that his body would not be growing further, and weight would not be a problem. It was my first experience with Jack the warrior, a position which would help him become a major contributor to this team.
There was no doubt in our minds Jack was a very good cox, and with a little more development he would be a very good candidate to compete for the Varsity boat. He entered Cornell as an Econ and Govt major in A+S. As a freshman he was in the mix with several really good coxswains who were upperclassman. One of those coxswains was truly exceptional. It was interesting to me, because Jack acknowledged that he was in competition with him, but instead of taking him head on, he instead focused on his classmates, and worked with them for the future rather than try to gain a seat with the older guys. Jack was already seeing the big picture, and realized that unseating an upperclassman is not easy, and for the team he could be far more useful, purposeful, and developing the best chance for his success to make those in his class the best they could be for a later year. The ability to see this to me was amazing.
Jack was a rowing junkie. He was early to practice, late to leave, always taking care of his teammates that wanted to work. His sophomore year it was becoming obvious there was going to be a major battle for the seats on the team and Jack was going to be one of the major players. As we moved to the early spring, we were rowing in February, and Jack was in the mix. It was unclear to where exactly everything was going to fall, but Jack had done an amazing job in that the guys trusted him a LOT. Of course COVID hit and took the season away.
This is where Jack really began to shine. Despite the constant oppression of COVID rules, Jack was the one who seemed to push the most. As a coaching staff we had our hands tied by hour limitations, masks, cleaning, etc etc, but Jack was there, barking orders, and commanding the moment so many times. Our Captain at that point was graduating in early Dec, and Jack was the JR Captain. He would be thrust into the spot light. I think he was born for the job. Or maybe he had just been waiting his entire life for that moment, but let there be no discussion other than, this team was his, and it was going to rise again if he had anything to say about it.
Like all captains there is a learning curve. Jack always loved the guys. He saw the best in all of them. But there is potential and there is reality. During the COVID year Jack got his real education as a Captain. He learned that nothing replaces real hard work. Not all the good positive thinking in the world, so when we actually got to race, and our speed was not as fast as we thought and hoped, it suddenly made sense. We needed to work. Jack was quick to help again see the whole picture and to help make the new standard, and try to correct what two semi lost seasons were doing to this team.
The fall semester of his Senior year was truly amazing. Jack could see the picture. He was coxing really well, he could come talk to me and get my thoughts and ideas, communicate them and motive the team with them, and also help to spur the team to a standard that most of them had never approached. It paid off when he coxed the 4+ at the Charles that would end up 4th in the Champ 4, second in the colleges by a small amount. It was Jack that got the guys to admit we can do a lot more too! The ball was rolling in the right direction for us. Jack was excelling in all aspects as he headed the team. The team was finally surging ahead, and academically he was pushing over a 3.5 GPA in A+S. The problem is his health was rolling the wrong way.
His entire Cornell Career Jack had cancer. I knew he had it, but my job is not to be nice to people, it is to try to bring the best out in people and make fast boats. I felt horrible seeing how much pain he was in, and how he would just deal with it. Some mornings he would carry the oars out as the guys were warming up on the ergs, and then he would lie down on the bay floor to “collect” himself as he would tell me. "These new damn drugs are killing me Coach." That was his simple statement, and into the boat, or into the launch he would go. IF we were coaching the 2- he and I would trade comments, and work off each other on how to proceed. We were a team. The whole time I knew he was hurting, but he would not let us know, and I would not treat him differently because I needed a great cox, he wanted that job, but he wanted to earn it fair and square and not be pitied for being sick.
Jack was so serious about rowing this was the killer question he would ask. “Coach, I think I have to miss a practice if that is ok?” “Why Jack? I would ask” “Well because I need to get a small surgery tomorrow to take a lump out of somewhere. It will be simple and I promise to only miss a day or two.” Damn. I am a varsity coach, and guys will complain about blisters, or a sore this or that, and here is a kid with lumps, and bumps, and things breaking and he is asking for a practice or two off to save his life? You get the point….. we were playing in a different universe. I would shake my head internally wanting to just hug the kid, but just reply “Jack do what you need to, but be safe and take the right amount of time, do not just rush back for us.”
When a coxswain gets really good, meaning safety of the crew, steering, technique, motivation, but also awareness of the coach and other coxswains, it gets really fun to be me. It simply means I get to coach, and he can have the boat in a good position for me to do that, I don’t need to worry about it, and I can focus on the guys, and the cox is absorbing what I am saying and applying it as well, all the while being aware of the other boats, and the surroundings. Often I can start to talk, and the cox can complete the sentence or the drill. Jack and I were there. My assistant coaches are each a leg that I depend on, but Jack was my right arm. We would talk on the phone, or in the bay before and/or after practice just to figure our next move out. It was so much fun. There is nothing better than when the whole machine is working.
Through Jack’s work this year, he was the guy who took the stretching sessions, the extra erg sessions, he pushed so many of the guys to make that extra sacrifice to do more. Coaches can yell, jump up and down, plead, beg, to try to get a crew to get the job done, but peer pressure is so much more important. When the athletes decide they want to make it happen, well things really start to go. Jack was the spark. He was making things happen.
By late this fall just after the Charles, Jack was having some trouble. He was stoic in covering it up. But he as hurting. Jack had never been able to take advantage of our Florida training trip because of his health or COVID. As we approached the trip he called and was so optimistic about being there. “I think I can make it” was uttered many times. As we got real close though he began to doubt himself and finally he told me he was pretty sick and might not be there. This was my biggest alarm.
Eventually Jack told me things were bad, and his parents talked to me then about the FLORIDA trip was his make a wish moment.
Imagine that. 21 years old, captain of the HWT crew at CORNELL and your make a wish moment, your final bucket wish item, is to attend the FLORIDA TRAINING TRIP with your team.
I could write a book about that trip. Seriously the thoughts, decisions, and emotions were off the charts. While it should have been exhausting, it served to only energized me. And that is true about my coaching. I love to coach rowing, especially to guys that test me. I am just as competitive as I ever was. I just don’t do it on the erg anymore, but rather by my preparedness to make an environment to bring the best out of the guys on that day. When I have an athlete as good as Jack, where he is giving me his best, I need to be on my best to give him the experience he deserves and desires. My athletes motivate me as much as I motivate them. Now make it a MAKE A WISH MOMENT and things get super charged.
Jack was able to row for several days. The trip was taking a toll on his health. Jack made me aware of when his last row would be. The night before I told him to make the first varsity line up of 2022, and tell me the workout. He set the line up, and went off to bed. Before he left he made a very few members of the crew aware he was pretty sick. That group met. It was a very hard meeting, but the basic message was this, Our job was not to show Jack pity, or try to sooth or comfort him, but rather make the best boat speed we possibly could. That would be what made him the happiest. That was our job.
It was simply magical. The warm up started well, very focused, yet there were some funny jokes as well. They were being themselves with a great mission. As we got into the workout it went to a new level. Jack was on his game. He could barely walk to get into the boat. He would be sitting on the dock before we launched because he was so tired, but in that darn boat he was all about it. Jack did not have the cleanest mouth when he was in the heat of battle, and he was raging on that afternoon! The water was bumpy, the wind was howling, but we have some good stretches, and when they went on the power, it was there! Jack was all smiles at the end of each piece because it was one of the best line ups we have put together in a LONG time.
We came off the water, the team broke it down on Jack. Jack yelled the best he could CORNELL, CORNELL, and the team roared BMA with the heart and soul of a 1000 lions.
In my 34 years of rowing, you only run into a character like Jack a few times. Each one has their thing to overcome, and they do it 10x over. Miracle, Rudy, Remember the Titans, Rookie, Boys in the Boat - are all stories about the same thing. Humble beginnings that make a run at being great. Jack Robinson is that character. For this reason we are renaming the Ackerman award, to the Ackerman-Robinson Award. This award is given for spirit, comraderies, and competitiveness. Both of these men were similar in their own time, both helping to keep the tradition and excellence alive within Cornell Crew.
A few of the guys would see Jack alive one more time. Last Sunday we saw him. He sat with us and told us rowing stories. The fight was still in him. He dreamed and thought of speed, but his body would not. In his Mothers words, he simply did not take the next breath several days later, and he died peacefully with his family.
Jack never stopped fighting, to be the best, to try to make us win, and I am so sad, but relieved, he has some peace. All those years of not showing it, of dealing with the pain. It amazes me how a person can do that with mind over matter.
We all know that one certain thing in life is you die. Jack will continue to live with me until I die. I work hard to make sure the awards in our cases, the names on our walls, help current rowers learn how to overcome, to excel, to push themselves to be the best they can be by keeping the names alive. Jack certainly made that example for his crews. As the team is unsettled to say the least, Friday night we put them back into motion. After announcing the workout, I looked at the guys and stated, can you imagine how Jack would have said it??? That brought a bunch of smiles up, because Jack would not have been so nice about getting back into the saddle!
Many have asked logistics about a memorial service. Jack’s parents are working on it, and I will keep you updated.
The team lost their corner stone. This is a terrible loss, but turn it around. It is now an opportunity for those that were taught by Jack to show that they learned and to take that opportunity and run with it.
Jack I sure hope you find that calm water……….BMA”
-Todd Kennett, Spirit of ‘57 Director of Rowing
Please feel free to leave any stories and memories of Jack in the comments below