Public invited to honor late Rock Island Arsenal Firefighter
Capt. (Retired) Tad D. Robison, 52, of Andalusia, passed away April 2 at his parents’ home in Las Vegas, Nevada, surrounded by family after his long fight with pancreatic cancer, according to a news release.
Robison retired as a Rock Island Arsenal Fire Department captain prior to his death.
Robison’s body, and his family, will arrive in the Quad Cities from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport on Friday. The cortege (procession) will travel to the Quad Cities to Trimble Funeral home in Moline via Interstate 88 to John Deere Road, and then merge onto Interstate 74 to 7th Avenue.
The public is invited to line the route and pay their respects to Robison. The estimated time of arrival in the Quad Cities is between 7-7:30 p.m., the release says.
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Services to celebrate Robison’s life will be held at Vibrant Arena at The MARK in Moline, on Monday, April 10, beginning with a firefighter salute and Masonic service at 3 p.m., immediately followed by visitation until 8 p.m. A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 11, at Vibrant Arena, the release says.
After this service, Robison will make his final journey to the Rock Island Arsenal Fire Department so that employees and his fellow team members may bid him farewell. Employees of the Arsenal are invited to line Rodman Avenue at 11:30 a.m. and are welcome to attend the service at the fire station. (It is requested that only Arsenal employees attend this event.)
Robison began his professional firefighting career at the Rock Island Arsenal Fire Department in March 2001 and achieved the rank of captain. When he accepted the position as a firefighter, he also took on the chief role in the firehouse.
During the last years of his career, he continued his professional duties while undergoing chemotherapy. He retired March 2021 after 20 years of service. The Rock Island Arsenal Fire Department has strong community partnerships with fellow fire departments in the Quad Cities through the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) agreement, which unites the RIA Fire Department and neighboring fire departments under a joint response umbrella, allowing for reciprocity of services on and off the arsenal, according to the release.
Robison was a veteran who served honorably in the Illinois National Guard. He also was an off-ice official for the Quad City Mallards and Storm.
His honors and decorations include: The Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, and Illinois Long and Honorable Medal. He received the Civilian Service Commendation Medal, Life Saving Hero of the Day, and numerous letters of commendation for service to Rock Island Arsenal during his tenure with the Rock Island Arsenal Fire Department.
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