Donald Kelly Robbins, Ph.D.

Donald Kelly Robbins, Ph.D. was born April 6, 1924, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Laud Davis Robbins (L. D.) of Sparta, Tennessee, and Jewell Aileen Redding of Cheatham County, Tennessee. He passed away November 17, 2018. His parents, his younger brother, Earl, as well as his first wife, Exa Robina Culpepper, and second wife, Shirley Evans, preceded him in death.

Donald graduated as valedictorian of his high school class in 1941. He graduated Cum Laude from Texas Tech College in 1944, with a degree in Physics and attended the University of Minnesota, where he received a Master's Degree in 1949. In 1952, he received a Ph.D. in Physics from Vanderbilt University.

Donald was part of the Research Staff at the Field Research Lab of Magnolia Oil Company in Dallas. He started his career at Sandia National Labs in 1952. While at Sandia, he worked in Reliability, the Computer Organization, Perimeter Security and Drafting. He was fortunate to be there near the birth of computers. He witnessed the change from “big iron” room-size computers to the small PC (personal computers). For a time, he was supervisor of the Advance Technics Division, charged with pushing back the frontiers of computing at Sandia. He retired after 49½ years at Sandia. “It was time to go.”

He served in the US Navy from 1944 to 1946. He was a member of a crew flying target drones for gunnery practice by Navy destroyers. From that early start, drones have advanced mightily.

A short time before retirement until 2014, with the support of Betty Hawley, he transcribed 9/10ths of the 1860 Tennessee Census encompassing over 900,000 names. These were placed on a public web site, to be available to all.

Donald is survived by his long-time companion, Betty Hawley, who filled his last years with love and joy; four children, Donna Lynn Sullivan (Lynn) and husband, David, of Albuquerque; Kyra Ann Ludwigson of St. Paul, Minnesota; and grandchildren, Katy Zitzer and husband, Marko Zitzer; great-grandson, Vincent Mark Zitzer; and Ben Ludwigson; Dr. David Nichols Robbins of Albuquerque and wife, Ruthie Horn; and two grandchildren, Dr. Michael David Robbins and wife, Dr. Katherine Robbins of Washington, DC; and Mandy Robbins of Albuquerque; and Janna Sue Bordeaux of Phoenix, Arizona. His sister-in-law, Joyce Robbins, of Phoenix, Arizona, also survives him.

A Visitation will be held on Tuesday, November 20, 2018, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. at FRENCH – Wyoming. Services will be held Wednesday, November 21, 2018, 10:00 a.m., also at FRENCH – Wyoming. Private interment will be held at the Santa Fe National Cemetery.

He hopes that in his passing he will be remembered by many, and that he will be missed by some.

In lieu of flowers, because of his love for his granddaughter, Mandy, who has autism, Donald asked that donations be made in his memory to Mandy’s Special Farm, P.O. Box 9346, Albuquerque, NM 87119, www.mandysfarm.org.