Ron Robinson loved postage stamps, the U.S. Mail and Arkansas. And now friends and admirers of the late Little Rock ad man are working to have a post office named for him.
On Sept. 28, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed Rep. French Hill's bill, H.R. 6080, the Ronald A. Robinson Act. The bill would rename the Forest Park Station Post Office at 5420 Kavanaugh Blvd. in Little Rock after Robinson, who served on the U.S. Postal Service's Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee for 15 years.
Speaking on the House floor, Hill, who counts Robinson as one of his mentors, said: "Ron's love for postage stamps and his work on the United States Postal Service Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee makes him the ideal citizen to name his neighborhood post office after in recognition of his lifetime service to Arkansas and America."
Robinson, who died at age 75 on Aug. 14, 2018, was the R in CJRW, a marketing and communications firm. He was a serious collector of postage stamps, and during his tenure on the stamp advisory committee was involved in the development of more than 1,750 stamp issues.
Denver Peacock spent 12 years at CJRW where he got to know Robinson, who also collected vintage movie posters. Peacock, along with Skip Rutherford, Jordan Johnson and others, wanted to honor their friend and his enthusiasm for stamps.
"We felt like the best way to pay tribute to him would be to help lead a grassroots effort to name the Heights post office in his name," Peacock says.
The process started up in earnest about a year ago, Peacock says.
"We got the blessing of Norman Hodges of the Heights Neighborhood Association ... and then we worked with several other entities and people who loved Ron, including his son, Reid, who gave us permission for this project on behalf of the family."
Among those who wrote letters of support were Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott, former Mayor Mark Stodola, Hodges, State Rep. Andrew Collins, City Director Kathy Webb, Ann Perry Austen and Dr. Bill Burnham of the Pinnacle Stamp Club and more.
The bill now awaits approval by the Senate, which Peacock and Hill say they hope will happen before the end of the year.
Robinson is already the namesake of the Central Arkansas Library System's theater in the River Market, and for a fella who loved letter-writing and stamps, having his name on a post office would be an apt homage.
"He would love it," Peacock says. "I joke with Reid and others that he was probably more important to the revenue at that post office than any other individual because of his prolific note-writing. There is no telling how much money he put into stamps writing to his friends around the country and the world."
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