Emma H. Robbins passed away peacefully on January 16, 2025, at age 100. She was the loving wife of Frederick J. Robbins, who passed away in 2013.
Born June 24, 1924, Emma was the daughter of Harvard anthropology professor Earnest A. Hooton and Mary (Camp) Hooton. She grew up on Buckingham Street in Cambridge and attended Buckingham School for Girls (across the street from her home). Emma participated in theater there and played the role of Portia in Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice.”
After graduation from Smith College with degrees in art and physiology, Emma worked at the Harvard Coop, where she met her future husband, Fred, who was attending Harvard Law School. Emma and Fred and their children, Mary and John, moved to Concord, where Emma assisted in the design and construction of the family house, where the family has lived until the present day.
Emma was a kind and compassionate person who loved helping people and animals in need, including rescuing and finding homes for stray cats and adopting homeless dogs from animal shelters. She devoted herself to taking care of her family and home, even building a fallout shelter in the basement in the 1960s during the Cold War. Working in her yard and athletics were of great enjoyment for Emma, who loved playing tennis and golf throughout her life.
A devoted wife, mother, and grandmother, Emma loved her family very much. She leaves her daughter Mary J. Robbins; her son John F. Robbins and his wife Donna Robbins; her granddaughter Virginia Robbins and her husband Derek Olson; all of Concord.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m., Friday, April 4, in the Concord Funeral Home, 74 Belknap Street. Burial will follow in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to Buddy Dog Humane Society, 151 Boston Post Road, Sudbury, MA 01776, buddydoghs.org; or to MSPCA-Angell, 293 2nd Ave., Waltham, MA 02451, mspca.org. Arrangements are under the care of Concord Funeral Home, concordfuneral.com.
