Lamar Robinson was always a hard worker. He graduated from Strawberry Mansion High School with honors, and to raise the money he needed to continue his education, he worked as much as he possibly could.
“He wanted to go to college, but he didn’t want to be a burden on me,” Wanda Robinson, Lamar’s grandmother, said. “So he wanted to work and save up money on his own to go to college.”
On Jan. 7, 2006, Lamar had finished his work shift at 3 p.m. He was home by 4 p.m., before going out to cash a paycheck he had received that day.
“He gave me a zerbert on my cheek… like what they used to do on ‘The Bill Cosby Show,’” Wanda said. “He said, ‘I’ll be back,’ and that was the end of it.”
By 5 p.m., Lamar was dead. The 19-year-old was killed and his hard-earned money and car were stolen. As Wanda was doing her hair at home and awaiting the return of her grandson from his quick errand, the police knocked on the door to inform her of Lamar’s passing.
At the time of his death, he was working for a cancer treatment center in Philadelphia and prior to that, at a video rental store.
“He worked everyday from I want to say 15 until he died,” Wanda said. “He liked being busy, making money and working.”
The money Lamar wasn’t saving for college went toward his obsession with sneakers and his hobbies. His bedroom in his grandmother’s home had sneakers pristinely stacked in their shoe boxes, just like his grandmother taught him to do.
“Whatever kind of sneakers he liked, he got.”
Lamar’s favorite hobby was riding his bike and practicing freestyle. He would go down to FDR Park in South Philly to ride the ramps, do some tricks and have fun with his friends.
“He started off skating, then he went from that to skateboard, then he went from that to bikes, then from that to cars,” Wanda remembered. “He loved riding a bike, he could do all kinds of tricks.”
In school, Lamar was involved with clubs and always wanted to “help people and make things better for people.”
With so much of his life ahead of him, Lamar was incredibly proud of his high school graduation, and loved that he made his grandmother proud of him, too.
“All I have is memories because I had him since he was two,” Wanda said. “He was my child.”
Lamar is survived by his grandmother, mother and uncle.
