The skanner., March 14, 2012, Page 6, Image 6

Obituary
Services Held for Former Gresham Mayor McRobert
She led the delegation to establish Oregon’s first sister city on the African Continent
N
orma
Jean Augusta “Gussie”
McRobert died March 8, aged 79.
McRobert served as Gresham’s
mayor from 1988 to 1998.
“She was a dynamic person, easy to com-
municate with because she was very clear in
what she had to say,” said Bobbie Foster,
executive editor of The Skanner News. “She
was a strong leader and a very compassion-
ate person. She knew what she wanted to do
and she set out to get it done.”
Shane Bemis, the current mayor, said the
City of Gresham will fly its flags at half-
staff for 10 days, one for each year she
served as mayor.
Born in Blanca, Colorado, McRobert
grew up in Montana and southern Oregon.
She moved to Gresham in 1955. After start-
ing her career as a nurse, she earned
bachelor’s and master’s degrees in commu-
nications. She worked in radio and
television as a producer for Oregon Public
Broadcasting, and then started her own PR
firm, Rx Communications, before entering
politics.
As Gresham’s mayor she worked on the
regional growth boundary, and left a legacy
that includes 55 miles of off-road recre-
ational trails and 700 acres of irreplaceable
conservation areas, including buttes, wet-
lands and creek corridors. A champion of
citizen involvement, McRobert gave neigh-
borhood associations a voice in her
administration.
She also wrote a book about her difficult
childhood, “To Hell and Back: Survive and
Thrive.” In the book she relates her journey
McRobert not only met with male leaders in Nigeria,
she investigated women’s issues as well.
to success, despite having an alcoholic
father and a mother who, “hated me with a
passion.”
She first married Dr. Marshall Brown, but
the couple divorced after 10 years. Her sec-
ond marriage, to Gresham businessman
Chet McRobert, lasted for more than 40
years until his death in 2003.
Foster and McRobert became friends
through their membership in the Portland
chapter of Women in Communications Inc.
They traveled together to Owerri, Nigeria,
in July of 1991, as part of the delegation to
recognize Owerri and Gresham as sister
cities.
Page 6 The Portland Skanner March 14, 2012
Gussie McRobert in Owerri, Nigeria in July 1991 as part of the
delegation to recognize Owerri and Gresham as sister cities
Under McRobert’s leadership, Gresham
was the first city in Oregon to develop a sis-
ter city relationship with an African city.
“She was a pioneer,” said Bernie Foster,
Publisher of The Skanner, who also
traveled to Owerri with the Gresham
delegation. ”She was bold and she
didn’t take any nonsense.”
While in Owerri, McRobert want-
ed to meet with local women and
hear about their lives without offi-
cial intermediaries. At a time when
all the official leaders were men, this
was a radical concept. Bobbie Foster said
McRoberts got her way.
“She declared a women’s meeting to hear
their concerns and she made it known in no
uncertain terms that all the men should
leave the room,” Bobbie Foster recalled. “A
number of women expressed that they
wished they had a way to obtain seed
money to start small businesses. They said
that would help them care better for their
families.”
McRobert is survived by five sons: Marc,
She knew what she wanted
to do and she set out to
get it done
Skip, Bradley, and Timothy McRobert, Gre-
gory Brown; and three granddaughters,
Kristina Smith, Kindel Brown and Heather
Robertson
Services will be held at 3 p.m. Wednes-
day, March 14 at Gresham City Hall
Council Chambers, 1333 N.W. Eastman
Parkway.