Floyd "Pup" Rinard

Floyd “Pup” Rinard, 78, of Robinson, IL, passed away on May 25, 2025, at the Linda E. White Hospice House in Evansville, IN, leaving behind a legacy of grit, grace, and gospel-centered love.

Born on November 25, 1946, in Fairfield, IL, Floyd spent his early years in Wayne and Clark Counties before graduating from Marshall High School in 1964. Just one year later, in 1965, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served during the Vietnam War as a machinist—an occupation that fit him like a glove. He didn’t just fix things; he understood how they worked. That ability—both practical and patient—defined his life far beyond the military.

After marrying his high school sweetheart, Susan Milbourn, on April 16, 1966, Floyd would build a life for them rooted in hard work, integrity, and a love for his family and his Lord. He spent more than three decades working at the Marathon Refinery in Robinson, where he earned the nickname “Pup.” The story goes that when he first got there, he followed a seasoned machinist around so faithfully that someone joked he was like a little puppy—and the name stuck. Truth is, Floyd soaked up everything he could. By the time he left in 2000, the student had long since become the expert.

Even after retirement, he kept at it. From 2003 to 2012, he worked at Pioneer Industrial Corporation in St. Louis, where he and a buddy shared season tickets to watch their beloved St. Louis Cardinals. And when the seasons turned colder, Floyd and Susan turned south, spending ten winters in Palmview, TX, where Floyd teed off year-round and made fast friends on the golf course. After returning to Robinson in 2013, he continued to enjoy the game as a proud member of the Oak Glen Golf Course, where the greens were familiar and the friendships even better.

If he wasn’t golfing, chances were he was building something. Over the years, he crafted everything from cradles to potty chairs for his grandkids, often using woodworking skills honed in his younger days. In recent years, his hands slowed down a bit—but the heart behind them never did. Floyd also had something of a green thumb, which he put to good use tending to his flowers and vegetable garden. He took particular pride in transplanting honeysuckle from the old family homestead to his own yard years ago—a quiet act of preservation that spoke volumes. This spring, his granddaughters and great-granddaughters helped keep that tradition of beauty alive by planting flowers for him, adding new life to the soil he’d long tended.

He had the kind of personality that filled a room—outgoing, loving, deeply kind. But don’t mistake kindness for softness. Floyd was strong, even stubborn at times. Someone once said he was like a kitchen sponge: soft on one side, abrasive on the other. He wasn’t one to sugarcoat things. If you didn’t want the truth, you learned not to ask. But if you needed someone to care for you, fix something for you, or pray for you—he was always your guy.

Floyd was an active member of Highland Avenue Baptist Church, where he served faithfully as a Sunday school teacher and song leader. Church wasn’t just something they attended—it was something they lived. In fact, Floyd’s spiritual leadership was the beginning of the Rinard family’s walk with Christ. He was the first to say, “We need to get the kids in church,” and from that small step grew a generational faith rooted in trust.

And it’s that same trust that steadies us now. While our hearts ache in his absence, we don’t grieve without hope, because we know where he is. We know who he is with. And we know that the One who held him in life now holds him in death—and into everlasting life.

He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Susan Rinard (Robinson, IL); by his sons and daughters-in-law, Jim & Tammi Rinard (Robinson, IL) and J.D. & Christie Rinard (Hutsonville, IL); by his grandchildren, Caleb & Kie Rinard (Tokyo, Japan), Bethany & Alex York (Palestine, IL), Tara & Nick Pentell (Vincennes, IN), Jamie & Keith Brenton (Robinson, IL), Breana Rinard, Stephanie Rinard, and Travis Rinard (all of Hutsonville, IL); by his great-grandchildren, Aria, Lincoln, Harrison, Nova, Hadley, Hayes, Lila, and Ralph; by his sister, LaDonna Rhoads (Champaign, IL); and by several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Dale & Lois (Harl) Rinard, and by his grandson, Nathanael Rinard.

A time of visitation will be held from 4:00–7:00 p.m. on Monday, June 2nd, at the Goodwine Funeral Home in Robinson. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 3rd, at the funeral home, with Pastor Dwight McDaniel officiating. For those unable to attend in person, a livestream of the service will be available at https://www.goodwinefuneralhomes.com/live-stream/live-stream. Burial will follow in the Robinson New Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to Highland Avenue Baptist Church, with envelopes available at the funeral home.