ALLEGAN COUNTY, Mich. —
Jim Robinson was in Atlanta for his sister’s surgery when he got a call that changed his life.
“A neighbor of ours, who's a Stafford County, works with the police department, had called me to give us notification that [Tyler] was involved in an accident,” Jim said. “And, you know, was killed, he was, you know, pronounced dead at the scene.”
His son, Tyler Rexford-Dean Robinson, 34, was killed in a car accident in Allegan County, Michigan.
Jim and his wife, Dory Robinson, live in Stafford County, Virginia, where Tyler was raised.
When Dory Robinson saw their neighbor at their door she didn't think it was for Tyler.
“I actually thought that he was coming to the house because my youngest son had done something,” Dory said. “I looked at my son, Nathan, I said, ‘What did you do now?’”
Tyler left home at 18 to follow a girl to the state of Wyoming. He fell in love with the Midwest beauty, his parents said, and started working on a pipeline in South Dakota.
“Back in the beginning, when he left home, we called him our Greyhound Gypsy, because he was always taking the bus wherever, whatever state he was going to,” Dory said.
“Yeah, he was brave at that age. You know, we like to say that we were brave, we got married at his age," Jim said. “At 18, knew what he wanted and traveled the country how he wanted, lived, how he wanted, worked how he wanted.”
Tyler met his girlfriend, Donna Sue Kees, through TikTok and moved to Michigan to be with her. The Robinsons said they were supposed to move into their new apartment this weekend.
Over 10 hours away from Allegan County, the Robinsons immediately got to work picking up the pieces.
“We scrambled to find out what had happened,” Jim said. “By the time I got in from Atlanta and contacted Sheriff's Department, the sheriff who was the sergeant who was handling the case, was already gone for the evening, but one of the other sergeants had explained what had happened. Then the following morning, the sergeant that was directly involved called us and gave us full details of what had happened.”
The Robinsons were told Tyler was working on his truck after it became disabled on US 131 early in the morning. He was working underneath the car while Kees held a flashlight for him. Officials told the Robinsons Tyler died instantaneously. Kees had to get about 17 staples in her head, got run over, and suffered from road rash.
The Robinsons just want answers. Jim and Dory said officials are hesitant to give them information on their son’s accident. They learned information on the driver and his next court date from 13 ON YOUR SIDE.
“I do wish we had more information as to, you know, the charges, the steps, you know, what's going to happen, what possibly can happen,” Jim said. “It's just, you know we need a little bit of closure for that. You know, everybody that we talked to has been nice, but we still need more.”
After hitting stone walls with officials, Kees told the medical examiner to give the Robinsons her information. Since coming to Michigan, the Robinsons have been spending time with her and remembering Tyler.
“We're so happy, so happy to hear her voice,” Dory said. "I don't know who she was, but you know, I mean, she's a human being, she's someone my, my son loved.”
The Robinsons said Tyler was supposed to visit Virginia later this summer. He was making plans to move to Alaska.
“He was making his preparation and his lists of everything that he needed to move there,” Jim said. “He was hoping to buy some land, and, you know, work on the pipeline, or do something up there that he can just enjoy the rest of his life at. And that's always where he was happy.”
Dory said Tyler was a teddy bear and was very caring with an adventurous spirit.
Tyler leaves behind his girlfriend and his four kids who are currently not in the state. The Robinsons said they will be there to support their grandchildren.
Once they receive their son's ashes, the Robinsons are taking him back to Virginia. But one day, they say, he will finish his dream.
“Our dream is that we'll be able to take his remains up there, to Alaska, and give him what he wanted,” Jim and Dory said.
Joshua Bommerscheim, 20, of Mattawan was charged with two counts: operating while intoxicated causing death and operating while intoxicated causing serious injury.
Both are felony charges. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $15,000. He will be arraigned on September 5.