Robinson
The highest and only award given to a member of the community at large, TCPS’s Spirit of Service Award is given annually to an individual not associated with TCPS, who has lived a life full of service and compassion.
“We’ve had some great community members be awarded the Spirit of Service Award, and Robinson is a great addition to our list of recipients,” said TCPS President Dr. Bill Balzano.
“There are few people who have lived and served this community for so long, and it’s a pleasure to honor Mr. Robinson in this way.”
A lifelong Cleveland resident, Robinson was born to the late Eddie and Joyce Robinson. Though Robinson may have a short professional resume (his only job since college has been with Cleveland Plywood, a family business started by his father), he has done much beyond the walls of his business, Balzano said.
After graduating from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville with a degree in business and accounting, Robinson started as a salesman for the family business.
Following the passing of his father, Robinson was elevated to the position of president in 1978, a position he continues to hold today, and one that has grown in responsibility since Cleveland Plywood’s 2007 acquisition of roof and floor building components manufacturer Tri-State Truss.
“We are truly a locally owned business, with 100 percent of the stock owned by my two sisters, Amy Atchley and Molly Pierce, and myself,” said Robinson, the 2007 Mel Bedwell Businessperson of the Year.
Beyond his work at Cleveland Plywood, Robinson has served as a board member with the Cleveland-Bradley County Chamber of Commerce, volunteered with Cleveland’s Christmas in April, was a board member for the Child Shelter Home, served on the Bradley HealthCare Foundation and was a board member of the Tennessee Building Materials Association. Additionally, he served on the building committee for the new Cleveland-Bradley County Public Library.
Today, he is a trustee with the Cleveland State Community College Foundation and chairs the CSCC Investment Committee. He also serves as chairman of the Cleveland-Bradley County Library Board, is on the executive committee of and is a trustee of the Bradley-Cleveland Public Education Foundation.
He is a member of the Harry Truman Club, has been director of the Bank of Cleveland since 2003 and is a member of Business Roundtable.
Robinson and his wife of nearly 30 years, Karen Maples Robinson, have two children: Sam, a junior engineering major at UTK, and Lilly, a first-year nursing student at CSCC. The Robinsons are members of First Baptist Church.
TCPS’s Presidential Celebration is taking place tonight at the Cleveland Country Club.
The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. and includes food, an exciting auction and a state-of-the-school address.
TCPS is a PreK-12, Christ-centered, interdenominational, state-certified school that offers parents in Cleveland/Bradley County and surrounding areas an alternative for the education and formation of their children. TCPS is not affiliated with or sponsored by any religious denomination or church.
