Robert Dawson Obituary, Death – Robert Dawson has passed away unexpectedly. Bob was born and raised in Newington, Connecticut, during the Great Depression and World War II. He was born in the town of Norwood, Massachusetts. He was a Boy Scout and enjoyed baseball. During the Korean War, he joined the US Air Force and studied building engineering and construction at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He married Margie Robertson in 1954 and relocated to Ellington a year later after graduating.
Bob worked as a construction superintendent for several years and credits his expertise in the field with helping him become a better engineer. Russell & Dawson, Architecture and Engineering was started by him and Dan Russell in Hartford in 1965. Since then, the firm has designed thousands of different types of projects, and Bob has remained knowledgeable about the technical aspects of each one. He was never happier than when he was on a construction site inspecting the progress of a structure he planned.
Bob and Marge brought up their three children in Ellington, where Bob was a Deacon and Trustee of the Ellington Congregational Church. He was a member of the Fayette Lodge 69 of the Freemasons, the Greater Hartford Jaycees, and the MIT Alumni Association. He interviewed hundreds of MIT applicants as an MIT Educational Counselor. Bob’s family enjoyed the unique house he constructed in Ellington for five decades, and while the makeup of the holiday and birthday parties changed over time, the smiles and laughter remained consistent – except when Bob gave the blessing at Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. For 65 years, he was a caring parent and loyal spouse.
Throughout their life, Bob and Marge were involved in community activities. In the 1980s, he was president of the Ellington Historical Society and a member of the commission that developed Ellington’s Arbor Park. Bob attended the event on September 10 after the pair was chosen for the Ellington Wall of Honor in 2022. He adored camping and being in the woods, and he spent many years hunting in Vermont with his cousins. He liked to ski, dance, and read; his hobbies were diverse. Most importantly, he enjoyed his job, which he eventually retired from at the age of 90 when he needed to isolate during the COVID pandemic. He unwinded at home by listening to Beethoven and performer Johnny Hartman.
Bob was a gentleman who saw the best in everyone he met, and he was liked by everyone. His family, colleagues, and friends will all miss him greatly. He is survived by his son Robert M. Dawson IV and wife Bernadette of Sharon, Massachusetts, his daughter Margaret I. Dawson of Newington, Massachusetts, his daughter-in-law Patricia F. Dawson of Paxton, Massachusetts, his sister Shirley A. Dawson of Rockingham, Vermont, and several cousins. Robert M. Dawson V, Joseph D. Dawson, Celia M. Dawson, and the late Sean M. McGuinness are among his grandchildren.