Obituary for Estella Ettajane Robinson (Taylor)
Estella Ettajane Taylor Robinson, affectionately known as “Essie” or “Stella Bell” by her loving family and closest friends, was the beloved fourth child of six born to her parents, Dorothy L. Taylor White and the late Edward L. Taylor, Sr. in Onancock, Virginia on February 23, 1957. After a very brief encounter leading to her being transferred to multiple hospitals within a week with declining health, God welcomed Essie and she entered into eternal rest on Wednesday, February 2, 2022 at St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond, Virginia.
Essie was a true believer. She knew God gave her a purpose and she began sharing that purpose during her earlier years growing up in the Bayside Community as a youth member of Metropolitan United Methodist Church. She was often asked to lead solos and the entire congregation knew God was in their presence when she sang. Her favorite songs to sing were All I Need Is A Little More Grace and Heaven Help the Child. In addition to the assigned youth choir at church, she sang with various school choirs and community choirs. One of her favorite choirs was the Leemont Charge Community Choir, where they even recorded an album. After relocating as an adult, Essie continued her calling when she joined churches where she lived during various times to include, Rising Star Baptist Church in Emporia and Calvary Virginia Beach Baptist Church in VA Beach. Essie enjoyed attending church with family and for 15+ years she had a "Guest/Family" connection with Healing Chapel Baptist Church in Suffolk,VA. She enjoyed the fellowship with Rev. Allmond and the church family and she was always treated as their member during her times of need. Essie often said during these past 15 months of the pandemic that her greatest joy of being back home was being able to attend in person services at Metropolitan UMC. She would light up with praise talking about Pastor Rich sermons and the songs of Zion the choir sang. She said church felt like when she was growing up at Bayside "The church is Rocking" she said with a loud heartfelt laugh.
Essie also began her passion in counseling and consulting as early as a teenager, she was a mentor and leader in the Girl Scouts. She often dried tears of little kids in the neighborhood and asked them to sit with her, because of her asthma she often was not running and jumping like many of her schoolmates but she was sitting, watching and waiting knowing she had an important role. Essie’s love for people was often mistaken as a weak trait, but she knew it was her strongest trait because she loved everybody as God loved her.
Essie was educated in the Accomack County Public Schools. She graduated from Onancock High School in 1975. She immediately attended Norfolk State College, now University, and earned her undergraduate degree in Social Work in 1979. She later returned to NSU and also obtained her Masters in Social Work.
Immediately upon receiving her undergraduate degree, she returned home to Accomack County, where she got her first post-graduate position working with the community outreach programs for seniors needing assistance. She later decided to pursue her career choices and expanded her search to the Tidewater area. She became the Program Supervisor at the Community Action Agency STOP Organization with the VA CARES Program. Essie was committed to her calling of helping people and served in various positions and obtained certifications in social work, drug abuse counseling, foster care, mental health, and other roles of social work/services to develop, administer and monitor the social welfare of citizens throughout Virginia and North Carolina. She was employed for over 20 years with the City of Portsmouth, to include but not limited to positions with the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, Victim/Witness Program, FOCUS, and Opportunity House. Essie also worked several years as a PT Clinician with Maryview Hospital during this same time period. She continued in the same field of social work after relocating to various cities including Emporia, VA Beach, Keller, and back to VA Beach and finally retiring at age 62 from fulltime social work responsibilities.
Essie was always the love of her family. All of her sisters and only brother knew she held a special place in both parents’ hearts. She was named Estella after her paternal grandmother, which gave her that bond in her Daddy’s heart. She was the only child born in February with Ma Dot, giving them that special bond at every birthday party. Although Essie knew of those special connections, she never used that closeness to make others feel less loved. She encouraged them to find what made them special within themselves. There were sometimes that Essie enjoyed being the favorite or not having to do housework by acting like she would have an asthma attack if she was overworked with chores. Aunts and uncles came to her rescue, especially her great-aunt, the late Gladys Poulson, who let the world know Essie was her heart. She was reminded of this closeness every time one of her descendants saw Essie and she would just laugh and wink at the thought. In her own way of showing appreciation to her family, she often opened her house to all family members during travel times, fun times or even trying times. All family knew they could go to Chesapeake and be with Essie. She would cook her favorite dishes, she-crab soup, raisin bread with or without nuts, whatever they requested. Every holiday was always at Essie’s. Family from Delaware, North Carolina, and New Jersey knew they were welcomed for overnight stays with Essie. We joked that she was still trying to be their favorite after all those years. It was just the connection that she had with family that kept them close and concerned for her throughout her lifetime.
Essie loved traveling and cooking. She had her own catering company and once had several family members working with her and said her food was their pay, that didn’t go over well when the family was going to get that same good cooking anyway. She laughed and kept on cooking and having fun.
Essie did not have any children of her own, so she was that “SPECIAL Aunt” to her nieces and nephews. She had a special bond with her oldest niece, Rochelle, who Essie was honored to have Rochelle live with her when Ro was a toddler. In later years, during Ro’s high school years, she and her mom Elaine relocated from North Carolina to Chesapeake while Elaine was recovering from cancer. Essie was right there for Elaine and Rochelle during their time and God kept them close throughout every ordeal they encountered. Rochelle and Essie reversed roles in recent years with Rochelle serving in the role she has a Registered Nurse with National Institute of Health making sure Essie was doing all the things she needed to do to continue being healthy. Their daily talks stating off with Essie’s health and reading of numbers, blood count, blood sugar blood pressure, etc. Essie also had a “Super Glue Bond” to her only nephew, Leander S. Roberts, III “Big Lee.” When they got on the phone daily it would be hours of laughter and chatter like they were school buddies, sharing several calls a day.
Essie had a motto that she said to every niece and nephew, regardless of their generation. She told them every time she spoke with them “Make good choices.” She was known for that signature guidance and even when she wasn’t anywhere nearby, they would say it to one another to reiterate her guidance. All of them called her Aunt Essie, but one niece, who called her Ettajane. This dated back years ago when Danielle lived with her and/or she was the assigned family member to go and get Danni Boo when required.
Essie was preceded in death by her grandparents, John & Sophia Riley and Clifton & Estella Taylor; her father, Edward L. Taylor, Sr.; and her older sisters, Dorothy “Elaine” Taylor Blowe and Emily T. Roberts.
She is survived by her spouse, Ricky Robinson and his three sons, Marlon Walker (Erica), Bryan Robinson and Javan Robinson (Nisha) and grandchildren Khadarius and Khanaya; her mother and caregiver, Dorothy Taylor White; siblings, Phyllis T. Wessells (William), Edward L. Taylor, Jr. (Angela), and Vanessa T. Copeland (Randy); brother- in- law, Leander S. Roberts, Jr.; sisters-in-law, Denise Robinson and Zina Robinson; nephew, Leander, III; nieces, Rochelle, Patrina, Tanisha, Danielle, and Aviance; great-nephews, Leander IV, Zavion, and Amir; great-nieces, Iyana, Zayla, Lailah, and Zahra; one aunt, Bernice E. Anderson; special cousins who were like siblings, Roy Custis, Jr., William Custis, Sr., and Mariette Custis Smith; and a host of wonderful cousins and friends.
Essie was a true believer. She knew God gave her a purpose and she began sharing that purpose during her earlier years growing up in the Bayside Community as a youth member of Metropolitan United Methodist Church. She was often asked to lead solos and the entire congregation knew God was in their presence when she sang. Her favorite songs to sing were All I Need Is A Little More Grace and Heaven Help the Child. In addition to the assigned youth choir at church, she sang with various school choirs and community choirs. One of her favorite choirs was the Leemont Charge Community Choir, where they even recorded an album. After relocating as an adult, Essie continued her calling when she joined churches where she lived during various times to include, Rising Star Baptist Church in Emporia and Calvary Virginia Beach Baptist Church in VA Beach. Essie enjoyed attending church with family and for 15+ years she had a "Guest/Family" connection with Healing Chapel Baptist Church in Suffolk,VA. She enjoyed the fellowship with Rev. Allmond and the church family and she was always treated as their member during her times of need. Essie often said during these past 15 months of the pandemic that her greatest joy of being back home was being able to attend in person services at Metropolitan UMC. She would light up with praise talking about Pastor Rich sermons and the songs of Zion the choir sang. She said church felt like when she was growing up at Bayside "The church is Rocking" she said with a loud heartfelt laugh.
Essie also began her passion in counseling and consulting as early as a teenager, she was a mentor and leader in the Girl Scouts. She often dried tears of little kids in the neighborhood and asked them to sit with her, because of her asthma she often was not running and jumping like many of her schoolmates but she was sitting, watching and waiting knowing she had an important role. Essie’s love for people was often mistaken as a weak trait, but she knew it was her strongest trait because she loved everybody as God loved her.
Essie was educated in the Accomack County Public Schools. She graduated from Onancock High School in 1975. She immediately attended Norfolk State College, now University, and earned her undergraduate degree in Social Work in 1979. She later returned to NSU and also obtained her Masters in Social Work.
Immediately upon receiving her undergraduate degree, she returned home to Accomack County, where she got her first post-graduate position working with the community outreach programs for seniors needing assistance. She later decided to pursue her career choices and expanded her search to the Tidewater area. She became the Program Supervisor at the Community Action Agency STOP Organization with the VA CARES Program. Essie was committed to her calling of helping people and served in various positions and obtained certifications in social work, drug abuse counseling, foster care, mental health, and other roles of social work/services to develop, administer and monitor the social welfare of citizens throughout Virginia and North Carolina. She was employed for over 20 years with the City of Portsmouth, to include but not limited to positions with the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, Victim/Witness Program, FOCUS, and Opportunity House. Essie also worked several years as a PT Clinician with Maryview Hospital during this same time period. She continued in the same field of social work after relocating to various cities including Emporia, VA Beach, Keller, and back to VA Beach and finally retiring at age 62 from fulltime social work responsibilities.
Essie was always the love of her family. All of her sisters and only brother knew she held a special place in both parents’ hearts. She was named Estella after her paternal grandmother, which gave her that bond in her Daddy’s heart. She was the only child born in February with Ma Dot, giving them that special bond at every birthday party. Although Essie knew of those special connections, she never used that closeness to make others feel less loved. She encouraged them to find what made them special within themselves. There were sometimes that Essie enjoyed being the favorite or not having to do housework by acting like she would have an asthma attack if she was overworked with chores. Aunts and uncles came to her rescue, especially her great-aunt, the late Gladys Poulson, who let the world know Essie was her heart. She was reminded of this closeness every time one of her descendants saw Essie and she would just laugh and wink at the thought. In her own way of showing appreciation to her family, she often opened her house to all family members during travel times, fun times or even trying times. All family knew they could go to Chesapeake and be with Essie. She would cook her favorite dishes, she-crab soup, raisin bread with or without nuts, whatever they requested. Every holiday was always at Essie’s. Family from Delaware, North Carolina, and New Jersey knew they were welcomed for overnight stays with Essie. We joked that she was still trying to be their favorite after all those years. It was just the connection that she had with family that kept them close and concerned for her throughout her lifetime.
Essie loved traveling and cooking. She had her own catering company and once had several family members working with her and said her food was their pay, that didn’t go over well when the family was going to get that same good cooking anyway. She laughed and kept on cooking and having fun.
Essie did not have any children of her own, so she was that “SPECIAL Aunt” to her nieces and nephews. She had a special bond with her oldest niece, Rochelle, who Essie was honored to have Rochelle live with her when Ro was a toddler. In later years, during Ro’s high school years, she and her mom Elaine relocated from North Carolina to Chesapeake while Elaine was recovering from cancer. Essie was right there for Elaine and Rochelle during their time and God kept them close throughout every ordeal they encountered. Rochelle and Essie reversed roles in recent years with Rochelle serving in the role she has a Registered Nurse with National Institute of Health making sure Essie was doing all the things she needed to do to continue being healthy. Their daily talks stating off with Essie’s health and reading of numbers, blood count, blood sugar blood pressure, etc. Essie also had a “Super Glue Bond” to her only nephew, Leander S. Roberts, III “Big Lee.” When they got on the phone daily it would be hours of laughter and chatter like they were school buddies, sharing several calls a day.
Essie had a motto that she said to every niece and nephew, regardless of their generation. She told them every time she spoke with them “Make good choices.” She was known for that signature guidance and even when she wasn’t anywhere nearby, they would say it to one another to reiterate her guidance. All of them called her Aunt Essie, but one niece, who called her Ettajane. This dated back years ago when Danielle lived with her and/or she was the assigned family member to go and get Danni Boo when required.
Essie was preceded in death by her grandparents, John & Sophia Riley and Clifton & Estella Taylor; her father, Edward L. Taylor, Sr.; and her older sisters, Dorothy “Elaine” Taylor Blowe and Emily T. Roberts.
She is survived by her spouse, Ricky Robinson and his three sons, Marlon Walker (Erica), Bryan Robinson and Javan Robinson (Nisha) and grandchildren Khadarius and Khanaya; her mother and caregiver, Dorothy Taylor White; siblings, Phyllis T. Wessells (William), Edward L. Taylor, Jr. (Angela), and Vanessa T. Copeland (Randy); brother- in- law, Leander S. Roberts, Jr.; sisters-in-law, Denise Robinson and Zina Robinson; nephew, Leander, III; nieces, Rochelle, Patrina, Tanisha, Danielle, and Aviance; great-nephews, Leander IV, Zavion, and Amir; great-nieces, Iyana, Zayla, Lailah, and Zahra; one aunt, Bernice E. Anderson; special cousins who were like siblings, Roy Custis, Jr., William Custis, Sr., and Mariette Custis Smith; and a host of wonderful cousins and friends.