Flintridge Prep students find inspiration in 1936 Olympian Mack Robinson’s life

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With her daughter, Kathy Robinson-Young, standing to her left, Delano Robinson, wife of 1936 Olympic silver medalist Mack Robinson, speaks to Flintridge Prep students at a presentation sponsored by the student-run Athletic Council on Wednesday, March 29, 2017.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Delano Robinson, in front of a portrait of her husband Mack Robinson at the 1936 Olympic games.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Kathy Robinson-Young speaks about her father at a presentation at Flintridge Prep.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Kathy Robinson-Young, daughter of Mack Robinson, with her arms on the shoulders of her daughter Brittni Hamilton, surrounded by students in the Athletic Council on Leadership at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Delano Robinson, the wife of Mack Robinson, surrounded by students in the Athletic Council on Leadership at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Senior Danny Chiarodit, 17, introduces the guest speakers to the students at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Kathy Robinson-Young, daughter of Mack Robinson, holds up a portrait of her father when he was in the 1936 Olympics.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Delano Robinson, the wife of Mack Robinson, is introduced and salutes the audience at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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The Athletic Council on Leadership pose for a photo with their guests Kathy Robinson-Young, Delano Robinson and Brittni Hamilton, at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

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Kathy Robinson-Young, daughter of Mack Robinson, demonstrates how well her father played tennis, despite never having played the sport before, during a discussion about his life at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Cañada Flintridge.

(Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

By Sara CardineStaff Writer

April 3, 2017 1:25 PM PT

Pasadena’s Mack Robinson was a man whose athletic accomplishments were sometimes overshadowed by the proximity of larger historic figures, like fellow 1936 Olympian Jesse Owens or his own younger brother, Jackie.

But in the life of his daughter, Kathy Robinson-Young, Robinson made a tremendous personal impact.

In a March 29 assembly, Robinson-Young shared with Flintridge Preparatory School students how her father’s involvement with the Special Olympics — and his insistence that she join him in the effort — would later influence her life as the mother of a child living with a disability.

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Joined by mother Delano Robinson and young daughter Brittni Hamilton, Robinson-Young recalled memories of her father and encouraged students to get involved in causes they care about. The talk was sponsored by the school’s Athletic Council on Leadership.

Director of Athletic Initiatives and ACL adviser Alex Rivera said he came to know Robinson-Young through the school’s involvement with the Special Olympics. The two worked together after the city of Pasadena became host town for the Special Olympics 2015 World Summer Games and Prep hosted 100 participating international athletes.

“It was really great,” Rivera said of the visit. “Her message was to get involved. There may be a passion that you don’t know is out there that may take you down a pathway that will lead you places in life.”

sara.cardine@latimes.com

Twitter: @SaraCardine

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