In loving memory of Robin Berzak - Obituary Baldwin Brothers

Obituary

Robin Francis Berzak was a loving mother, wife, sister, and friend. She was born on May 30th, 1953, and grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. She and her husband have lived in Winter Park, Florida, since 1980.

Robin graduated from East Carolina University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. After college she pursued a career in Interior Designer and started her own firm, working on projects across the country. She was also an Adjunct Professor at Seminole State College teaching Interior Design.

Robin and Bill met in college through a mutual friend. Upon meeting, Bill was instantly captivated by her warm smile and Southern charm. They enjoyed a marriage of nearly 43 years.

Robin was active at First United Methodist Church of Winter Park as a Deacon and pianist. She was involved in the PTA while her children were growing up and was also a member of the Rotary Club. She loved bike riding and traveling with her family.

Robin was warm, refined, and artistically gifted. She was voted friendliest and most welcoming by the residents of her college dormitory. She loved to organize events and get-togethers. She was an active parent, planning and managing school events, organizing block parties, and attending extracurricular activities for her daughters. She never missed a game or recital.

Robin was elegant yet modest. She was compassionate, nurturing, and saw the best in people. She carried herself with grace and kept a positive and gracious attitude.

Aside from her artistic gifts of piano and interior design, Robin enjoyed creative hobbies such as scrapbooking, photography, painting, and sewing. She also played the accordion and even sewed her own wedding dress as well as years of Halloween costumes for her daughters growing up. Robin truly had a creative gift.

Robin passed peacefully in her home in the presence of her family the morning of January 4th, 2023. She is predeceased by her parents Jack and Mary Alice Francis. Robin is survived by her husband William Berzak, her daughters Christine and Caroline Berzak, and her brothers Rodney Francis and Keith Francis.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 14th at 11 AM at First United Methodist Church of Winter Park. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Habitat For Humanity.

Please Visit, https://www.facebook.com/robin.berzak

A Remembrance of Robin
By Carolyn Archdeacon

I befriended Robin just shy of 30 years ago at the Convention Center on I-Drive taking a newly required 8-hour Continuing Education class for Interior Designers. As there is no coincidence with God, we sat down next to each other in a room filled with 1,200 other design professionals. During our break times and lunch we lamented about the unimpressive experience we were having with our $125 Faux Painting class. Thus a friendship was born. In these short periods of time and trying to get the Faux Painting lesson out of our minds, we quickly deducted that we shared a similar way of life, interest, and goals. We were both professional working Moms in the health care industry; living just blocks apart in Winter Park. Our personal priorities were aligned in faith and family. Our business priorities were to truly make a positive impact in the world of design. We had an instant synergy. Motivated by the numbers of 1,200 people at $125 each, we decided we could teach Continuing Educations classes with real valuable information not to mention just working a few hours a week while of dear children were at Mommie’s Day Out. Together we formed a business partnership. We went on to speak at international conferences, were published, taught at ASID Headquarters in Washington D.C. , taught Marriott’s Interior Design Team, and much, much more. A quick segway. Back in those days before credit cards and Venmo, we only accepted cash. Robin elected herself Treasurer so once back in our hotel room she could take the cash and throw it in the air like confetti screaming, “There is just something about cash I like!”

As time went on, Robin shared selflessly all the finest characteristics of friendship as many of you here can confirm. Robin never waivered from being completely honest, authentic, and sincere. She was able to easily be open and engage in tough conversations about life’s challenges. Our discussions varied greatly in content, but together, led by her Southern grace, love, and genuine empathy, all subjects were addressed and solved with encouragement and guidance. And all ended with a good laugh.

After leaving the Continuing Education world, our discussions ranged from strategies, designs, and billable rates to balancing Motherhood while working professionally and transitioning to empty nesting. Throughout all the years, including her final chapter, we centered on how to listen to God’s will, accept it, and act on His plan.

We believed true friendship is fun. I trust all of us here today have special, happy, and joyful memories of our times with Robin. We always had no trouble at all in knowing how to get a smile on each other’s face. Some of my favorite fun times with Robin were:
• Fly fishing was all about the outfit and not about the catch.
• Snow shoeing was all about the laughter, even when there was no snow.
• Biking was all about the chit chat while peddling and not about the distance traveled.
• The dining was all about the wine… Oops! I mean… all about the company and not about the food.

We believed true friendship is practicing unconditional acceptance. We both had quirks and oddities that others might not understand, but we did. Another proof in both of us having successful and long marriages to two wonderful men. With both our husbands being named Bill, one day out of the blue she coined nicknames for them. Her husband, Bill Berzak, became Bad Boy or BB and my husband, Bill Archdeacon became Bad Ass or BA. She added that both “would always be a work in progress”. These nicknames brought a large smile and a laugh to her face the last time I saw her just over a week ago.

We believed true friendship was trustworthy. As all of you here today know that you could trust Robin with your design projects, your possessions, or your money. I might add though, don’t trust her with your pet. I recall the time she had to compromise her trustworthiness. At very young ages, Caroline and Christine had the responsibility of caring for a friend’s gerbils while the friend vacationed. Gerbils do not care to be handled or picked up, but the girls loved playing with them. At the earliest opportunity, the gerbils escaped; dashing away to find some peace in some dark, remote, and far away crevasse of their large home. Together we searched unsuccessfully to find them and place them back in their cage. Her only resolve was to go to PetsMart and purchase new gerbils with the same coloration and markings with hopes of protecting little hearts from being broken. Well, we can all imagine how that turned out.

Goodbye my dear friend Robin. We all are comforted by your grand and generous spirit, the essence of who you truly are. We welcome your spirit to remain in our hearts. As you have always been a hard worker, we know you will continue to be so by sending extra strong and long-lasting doses of your divine energy, wisdom, and love to Bill, Christine, and Caroline to guide them in finding their bright futures to come.

Thank you Lord for your special gift of dear, sweet Robin Berzak. I can hear the angles escorting her home with the glories of piccolos, flutes, clarinets, trumpets, and choirs.