The heartbroken family of a man who died from brain cancer in a matter of months wants to pay tribute to him and also raise awareness of the condition. 

David ‘Davey’ Robinson (62) was a man who “cared about everyone” with an endearing passion for his two children, Mark and Ashley, who have paid tribute to him this week following his death on August 30. 

Speaking about their dad, Ashley said: “Mark and I were his two passions in life. He and mum were involved in everything we did. We used to go camping every year in Mayo for the Ballina Salmon Festival; dad would have gone out of his way to give us experiences.”

The Ballinamallard dad of two died as a result of Glioblastoma Multiforme – a fast-growing and aggressive brain tumour.

In a bid to raise awareness of the condition, Mark and Ashley spoke in detail about their father’s symptoms. His family noted changes in Davey’s behaviour last December.

Ashley said: “A lot of people who have brain tumours are not diagnosed until they have a seizure or collapse, but we got dad seen to before that because his behaviour had changed. We noticed he was more agitated, we thought he had dementia at a stage, or depression.”

Mark said: “Dad and I [usually] went for coffee a few times a week. He then stopped contacting us or only spoke a few minutes on the phone.

“Dad didn’t have headaches that we know of, and he didn’t have seizures which is the main symptoms [of a brain tumour]. He could have had seizures, but we caught him in time.”

Ashley added: “His vocabulary completely changed. We would have gone from two hour-long phone calls to his repeating the same words and phrases over and over again.

“When he was diagnosed, [doctors] said, ‘It could be tomorrow, it could be a few days’, and they said ‘You will get a month, no more than a month, if you’re lucky’. But we got seven months with him.”

Davey was born on May 7, 1960 to Edward (Eddie) and Elizabeth (Lily) Robinson. He grew up in McQuaid Villas, Ballinamallard with his brother Colin, and attended Ballinamallard Primary School and later Portora Royal School. 

He left school at 16 to join the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) cadets, and progressed into the RUC (later PSNI) in 1978.

He served 36 years – receiving a long service medal – in various stations, including Aughnacloy, Clogher, Lisnaskea and Enniskillen. He retired from the PSNI in 2012. 

Outside of work, Davey had a wide range of hobbies. Detailing just some of his father’s interests, Mark said: “He loved fishing, he was a member of the police fishing club and knew every spot of the lake. He had a caravan in Benone and he was there most weekends, from March to October.”

Davey also enjoyed metal detecting and served as the Operations Manager for the Fermanagh branches of the RNLI from 2008 to 2013.

In addition, he was a founding member of the Lough Erne Skiing Club and enjoyed boat rallies along Lough Erne.

Sport was another passion of his, and he shared that love with his children, travelling to Ulster and Ireland rugby matches and supporting them in their pursuit of frisbee. 

A great passion for Davey was Ballinamallard Football Club. Mark said: “In the past ten years he became a quite loyal Ballinamallard supporter, home and away. Everybody always knew where he stood – he stood on the front step of the committee room, handing out chewing gum to people when he was chatting.”

Ashley and Mark were thankful for all the support, including from Davey’s friends or  ‘adopted family’, Bobby and Ann Lee, Alison Beaumont, and others. 

They also wished to  highlight the support from agencies who helped Davey in his final months, saying: “We would like to thank the carers who came in on a daily basis to help with dad. Without their physical and emotional support, we wouldn’t have been able to keep him at home with us.”

They added: “We had a lot of support from Macmillan, Marie Curie and SWELL in Enniskillen. They gave him reflexology twice a week, and it was so beneficial for him. SWELL have been very good to our entire family as carers and direct relatives.”

Davey’s funeral was held at Ballycassidy House on September 2.  Ashley delivered the eulogy and both Mark and Ashley read testimonials. 

During the funeral, they played his favourite music, ‘I Love You Ev’ry Time’ by  The Fureys, and ‘Hope There’s Someone’ by Anthony and the Johnsons. 

Dahlias from the garden were picked and arranged by Fiona Mackenzie, Darling Buds Florist, on Davey’s wicker coffin. His remains were cremated. 

Funeral arrangements were conducted by Austen Stinson, W. T. Morrison Funeral Directors. 

David Richard Robinson is survived by his children, Mark and Ashley (Sam); his mother, Lily; his brother, Colin; his dear friend, Marilyn and a wide circle of friends.