Lavenia Robertson

Lavenia Green Faulkner Robertson of Milford CT passed away at CT Hospice in Branford on June 18,
2023 a little over a month shy of her 96th birthday. Known as Beanie to some, Memi to others and mom
to her seven children, she was born in Alert, Sandy Creek Township, Franklin County, North Carolina on
July 24, 1927. She was the daughter of the late Sidney Franklin Faulkner, and Lelia Hale Faulkner.
Lavenia was nicknamed Veanie and then Beanie by her older sister Pat who was too young when Beanie
was born to pronounce Lavenia. As a very young child, Beanie remembered having ice cream suppers at
her grandparents’ home. In the early 30’s, however, her grandparents lost their farm and life became
very hard as it did for many during the Great Depression. Her family moved eight times, always staying
in the community. Food was often scarce. Sometimes all they had to eat was peanut butter and Karo
syrup on a biscuit. When she was old enough, she went to work in the fields alongside her mother and
brothers stripping tobacco and chopping cotton. What sustained her was the love and faith of her
parents along with family stories, sibling pranks, laughter, and school. Her mother, who could not read
or write at the time, wanted her daughter to have an education so she sent Beanie to school. It wasn’t
hard to make her go every day. She loved school. With her natural curiosity and encyclopedic memory,
she excelled. Plus, she made lifelong friends. By the time she was in the eighth grade, she was almost six
foot tall with long auburn hair. She was a striking young woman who knew so many people in the
community and was so well trusted that at election time she was allowed to sit in the room where
people voted and vouch for those who could not sign their names.
After graduation from Gold Sand High in 1944 where she was a National Honor Society member as a
well as a champion basketball player, she moved to Henderson NC to pursue a career with the US Cadet
Nursing Corps. While waiting to meet the age requirement, she got a job in a textile mill. A year later,
she met the love of her life, a handsome young marine just home from the South Pacific. They met and
married in less than a week on Christmas Eve 1945. It was a whirlwind courtship that turned into a 57
year marriage. Six months after she married, she and her husband, James P. Robertson, left NC and
moved to Bridgeport CT, a rapidly growing industrial and manufacturing center. Four years later with
three children in tow and one on the way she and her husband moved into their home in Stratford CT.
They didn’t have furniture but they had a home. She loved her new home and she loved living in
Stratford. She raised her seven children there and considered them her greatest achievement. She
wanted them to become loving, caring, honest, and responsible individuals who knew right from wrong.
She told her children she would always love them no matter what they did. She gave them her
unconditional love. She also told them, however, that if they did something wrong, she was going to let
them know. True to her word, she did. She was proud of her children and would often tell them “I love
you with all my heart.”
In the 1960’s she went to work, first working part time in retail at Alexander’s at the Milford Post Mall
and then at Brooks Hirsh in Fairfield. She moved on to a full-time position in the accounting department
at the Acme United Corporation where she remained until she retired at age 70. She enjoyed working
and had fond memories of her many co-workers. At work, she was known as Memi. This was the
nickname her husband gave her shortly after they met. He did not care for the nickname Beanie. It
simply didn’t fit her tall graceful stature.
She loved to sew. She could combine or rework a pattern to give it her own flare. When her children
were young, she made most of their clothes. She enjoyed decorating, and was passionate about

gardening. Her yard was filled with beautiful flowers. She loved to shop for presents and little treasures
and delighted in receiving them. She was also an avid reader. It was not unusual for her to be reading
two and sometimes three books at a time. Her mother once said if they made a statue of her, she would
have to have a book in her hand.
She will be remembered for her beauty, grace, charm and incredible memory. She was great at Jeopardy
and often knew more than Ancestry about her many relatives.
She is survived by her children Juan P (Julianne) of Long Beach, CA; Paula Denike (James) of Newtown,
CT; Cheri Scholl of Milford, CT; Timothy (Kate) of Phoenix, AZ; Russell (Jing) of San
Bernardino, CA; son-in-law, Thomas Bryk, Derby, CT; sister-in-law, Carolyn Faulkner of Franklin, VA; dear
friend, Andrew Lerer, NJ; six grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, 3 great great grandchildren, two
nieces and three nephews.
She was predeceased by her husband, James Paul Robertson, of Stratford, CT; son Donald of NYC;
daughter Kyle Bryk of Manassas, VA, her son-in-law, William P. Scholl of Milford who welcomed her into his home for the last 10 years of her life. She was also predeceased by her brother, David Lee (Fannie) of
Rolesville, NC; Sidney Franklin (Fayelene) of Henderson, NC; Charles Fenner (Gladys) of Butner, NC;
sister Pattie Mae of Alert, NC and one grandchild.
“A great Lady has passed”

A Tribute to Mom will be held at the family's convenience.

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