Dr. Robert Stuart Thomson passed away July 17, 2023. He is predeceased by his mother, Frances, his stepfather, Ernest and by his brother, Don. He is survived by half-siblings and two nieces.
Bob was born on April 30, 1940 in Vancouver. He graduated from West Vancouver High School then completed his B.A. at UBC (honors in French and Italian). In his third year, he went to Florence on a scholarship offered by the Italian government which lasted a year. He received his PhD from Yale in Romance Languages on a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship.
He taught at the University of Toronto, Emory University in Atlanta and at the University of Illinois. Moving back to Vancouver, he became a high school teacher.
Bob wrote several books including Florence, Dante and Me; Italian for the Opera; and Learn Spanish with Love Songs. He also started a publishing company, Godwin Books, where he published books by his great uncle, George Godwin—namely, The Eternal Forest and Why Stay We Here?—as well as his own books. Bob enjoyed playing trombone and played in various bands.
Sad. So enjoyed meeting Robert at our book club where we discussed Florence Dante and Me. Very special book and a man who lived his life uniquely. Sorry we did not have more time to spend with Robert.
Lynne Young
My dear friend Robert and his partner, Kate, were members with me in the International Friendship Club of Puerto Vallarta and a Tango aficionados group there. Robert loved Italy, France and Spain as well as their beautiful languages. He was a consummate teacher until the very end. I don’t think Robert realized how Montessorian he was in his use of Dr. Maria’s philosophy of following the interests of the learner. Robert seemed to say, “Oh, you like Opera? I’ll teach you Italian through opera lyrics. If you want to learn Spanish, I’ll teach you that language through your favorite Hispanic love songs. If you’ve had a painful childhood like mine, I’ll help you write your autobiography to gain healing and capacity to forgive.” This willingness to share was Robert’s strength and I will never forget him and his creativity!
Robert was a really fun guy to be around. He saw life through a slightly different lens and that made for many animated conversations memorable for all the right reasons. I am so grateful he gifted us a copy of Spanish Love Songs, it’s one of our all time fave CDs, and
Helped us learn some Spanish too. Rest in peace my friend.
To Richard’s family and friends: Please accept my profound sympathy. I had the good fortune to meet and chat with Robert in Puerto Vallarta. I was most impressed by his scholarship and by his friendly willingness to share his wide breadth of knowledge with me. He went out of his way to make me feel welcome. I cherish two of his books as a permanent remembrance of this brilliant and good man.
Robert was my second cousin: we shared great-grandparents James Godwin and Elizabeth Free Godwin. Raised on different continents, I never met him face to face, but we corresponded frequently over the past twenty years, mainly on family matters but also on our shared love of music, literature, travel, and philosophical ideas. He revered the memory of his uncle George Godwin and founded a small press to reprint some of George’s many books. Among Robert’s own, I especially admired Florence, Dante, and Me, the memoir of his formative year in Italy. I always hoped to meet him, and am sad to learn the reason for his silence.
Joscelyn Godwin
I am shocked and very sad to hear that Robert had died last year. He had to give so much valuable information to sing in Italian or speaking that language. I am very lucky ,that he presented me with his book on Italian opera pronunciation. He will not be forgotten.
Agnes Stieda.
Just discovered that Robert had passed away although I felt that was the case as I hadn’t heard from him since last summer. The last time I visited him in Victoria he said all he wanted to do was sit on the couch and watch Netflix which wasn’t like Robert. I am a writer/publisher as well and Robert worked as my editor a few times. Always encouraging, he marvelled at my books on Arthur Delamont and his bands as he knew several members from his childhood days in Vancouver. We shared our sorrow at the demise of the book business and talked about how hard it was these days to make a living as a writer/publisher. He was hoping to go back to Puerto Vallarta but unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be. I can live much cheaper down there he said. He also admired my reverence for always remembering and honouring my lifelong friends which he was gradually becoming one. I have now put my complete library of books in an online library which as of today has received 100,000 views. Robert would have loved it! If I had known he was moving on I would have told him I would have put his book on Dante up in my library for safe keeping where it would reach the biggest audience ever. He would have loved that as well.As I said, Robert edited several of my books now in my library so if anyone wants to pay him a visit you might find him on the pages of The Hat Lady, Rise and Fall of Canadian Airlines and The Life & Times of the Amazing Mr. D. http://www.issuu.com/metroguides. So long old friend, you didn’t go out gracefully, you were full of mischief and audacity and lived life to the fullest Chris Best, Warfleet Press
To Robert’s nieces (composed by his friend, Allen)
I want you to know that your uncle was a highly accomplished person. He had a PhD from Yale University in Romance Studies — the study of Italian, French and Spanish languages. He had high standards as a researcher and was an excellent writer. His main career, however,
was as a high school teacher and, after retirement, he showed his commitment to education by publishing teaching guides.
I met Robert about 20 years ago. I think it was through the Greater Victoria Concert Band. He played trombone in that band and I played trumpet. It was music that began our friendship and then it extended to our common interest in history and literature. Off and on we would have lengthy discussions over lunch or on walks around Victoria. We also, with our spouses, socialized at dinner parties and were members of the
Victoria Ballroom Dance Society.
I think that Robert’s biggest disappointment in life was not having a career in a university. He never wanted to talk about why he failed in that part. But he compensated by writing several books and by re-publishing books written by his great uncle, George Godwin. You can get the details of his publishing career by googling the site: Godwin Books. One
of the books written by his uncle, Why Stay We Here, presents the uncle’s experience in W.W.1. If you click on that title you will see a video of Robert making a commemoration statement in Ross Bay Cemetery beside the gravestones of men who fell during that war. He filmed it in about 2020. It preserves his voice and his dignified, good looks.
Robert also enjoyed travel — to Europe and especially to Mexico. His ability in Spanish made these trips very rewarding. They culminated in a book, Love Songs in Spanish, a book that I am most familiar with because I provided some research and I encouraged him throughout the process. Though Robert tended to understate his feelings, in this
book he surprised me with his summaries of songs that showed deep insight and emotional commitment. I often wondered why he didn’t let that part of him show more. It would have earned him affection and respect. I gave him both by assigning him the nickname, “Roberto”, which he loved..
Our friendship was an on and off experience because of different interests and different lifestyles. His ties to religion was one area that we differed on. In recent years we drifted apart. The last time I saw him was about three months ago, when he was in the hospital. Previous to that I was not aware of his health problems. He was not one to talk about it and he did not invite discussion about his personal circumstances. Looking back, it is plain that he needed care — but perhaps he thought it was undignified to ask for it.
His passing is a major loss. He was an accomplished scholar and he strived to raise public appreciation of literature and music. His book Italian for the Opera is an example of that. He could have contributed more. During the last year or so he was writing an autobiography. I read parts of it. It showed his struggles with family breakups and the lack of emotional ties that resulted in feeling isolated and having
to fend for himself. But in spite of these emotional handicaps, he produced a fine body of literature and he has the admiration of we who got to know him and benefited from his intellect.
Allen Specht
September 2023
My sincerest condolences.
Robert and I were partners for his last thirteen years. We shared many happy times together including much international travel; love of Italy and its language; French literature; ballroom dancing.
His passing was sudden and unfortunately we had lost touch in the last few months except for hospital visits, but had remained close in friendship.
His last literary project had been writing his memoirs and which I had been editing. Unfortunately this was not completed in time.
There remains a question, however, of whom his half siblings were.
If there is anyone who could answer this, it would be most appreciated.
Kate
I am sadden by the passing of Robert, who along with Kate became friends of my late husband ralph and myself, in puerto Vallarta.
I enjoyed knowing Robert and was impressed seeing his writing accomplishments over the years.
Barbara Smialek
August 3/ 2024