What does the 1997 Northwest Artistic National Roller Blading Championship and Glisan Street have in common? Volunteers of America Oregon’s Rodney Robbins, facilities maintenance technician.
Since January 2023, Rodney has kept the facilities at VOA Oregon running smoothly. From simple repairs to managing contractors, Rodney has bridged his generations of family history in maintenance and personal connection to recovery to the organization.
But there’s more to Rodney than meets the eye.
Since 1990, when he was just 11 years old, Rodney has been skating. Starting as a speed roller-skater, he moved to inline skates, and then hockey. Either on blades or wheels, Rodney found confidence and the meaning behind working hard.
“I used to have ears like Dumbo and my dad got them put back,” Rodney said. “He wanted to build me back up from my rough start with bullies. [Skating] brought me out of my shell and into a new appreciation of myself.”
To Rodney, it was like his family grew overnight thanks to the warm, welcoming environment he found. ‘Skate moms,’ he affectionately recalls, took him under their wing as he began honing his craft at the Oaks Park Roller Skating Rink.
His passion and dedication – countless weeks spent training, 10-hours a day spent on skates, and studying VHS tapes of his competition – culminated in 1997 when Rodney, at 18, won the Northwest Artistic National Roller Blading Championship. A significant achievement in its own right, Rodney’s win was a historic milestone for the sport too being the first year they held the inline creative solo dance event.
“When the crowd erupted and clapped, I was awestruck,” Rodeny said. “I knew that this was home and I [would] spend the next 20 years in it.”
“It’s not just a job for me. We get to help people restart their lives – to get a fresh start. I’m honored to play a role in that by keeping things running.”
But Rodney’s life took a turn post-2008 financial crash. The economic downturn led to the closure of his repair business, and he found himself returning to truck driving. Despite this setback, Rodney’s resilience shone through. He maintained his love for fixing things, a skill he had honed since childhood, influenced by his family’s involvement in maintenance and repair.
His path to VOA Oregon began almost serendipitously. Living across the street from the VOA Oregon’s Glisan site, Rodney introduced himself to the organization by offering to help watch over the property. His neighborly gesture opened the door to a more formal role within the organization soon after. Since then, Rodney has not only been a guardian of the facilities but also a symbol of the positive change VOA Oregon fosters.
“It’s not just a job for me,” Rodney said, having completed his own journey through a 12-step gambling addiction recovery program. “We get to help people restart their lives – to get a fresh start. I’m honored to play a role in that by keeping things running.”
Now, as a single dad of three, Rodney’s days are filled with a different kind of hustle. Balancing his role at VOA Oregon with fatherhood, he continues showing-up with the perseverance that defined his earlier years skating.
Rodney Robbins’ story is more than a tale of maintenance and roller skating; it’s a showcase of resilience, adaptability, and community impact. His life, with its twists and turns, serves as a reminder of the power of persistence and the significance of finding one’s place in the world. At VOA Oregon, Rodney does more than just keep the lights on; he brings a spirit of hope and renewal, much like VOA Oregon embodies the fact that ‘Change Begins Here.’