Marianne Foley Robeson

Marianne Foley Robeson 

Feb 5, 1954 - Aug 14, 2024 

Our beloved Marianne “Mari” Foley Robeson was born on February 5th, 1954, in Hiroshima, Japan. She grew up the youngest of four siblings, Dennis Richard Foley, Linda Katherine (Foley) O’Connell, and Gail Elizabeth (Foley) Orr, the children of Richard Foley, a big band clarinet player who fell for Arlene “Lyn” Foley, a hearing-impaired beauty. Richard’s military career took the family across the globe to various military posts, providing the Foley children with international birthplaces, Mari’s being Hiroshima. 

Mari and her sisters idolized their mother, who, in turn, adored her children to no end and nicknamed Mari “Beanie” because she was as small as a kidney bean when she was born. Eventually, the Foley family settled in Fairfax, Virginia, where Marianne attended Fairfax High School. Marianne married Johnny Trivett, and in 1971, she gave birth to her pride and joy, Christopher Trivett. 

Marianne met the love of her life in 1990 when she relocated from Texas to her sister Linda’s home in Chevy Chase, Maryland. Through Linda’s family’s deep involvement in the local music scene, Marianne was introduced to Jim Robeson, Grammy-winning producer, bass player, singer/songwriter, engineer, director, and many other hyphenates—but most important of all, Jim was Mari’s soulmate. Jim and Mari were married in Rockville, Maryland, on May 20th, 1995, at what can only be described as a wonderfully raucous good time celebrating their union. 

Marianne’s profession was as an orthodontist assistant, but her unofficial job was as a family jokester. She told bawdy jokes, making everyone spit out their drinks inappropriately at quiet moments, renamed everyone in the family (punkin’ head, snake man, anniebananie), including herself, as “Scari Mari,” and famously left live crabs in a toilet after a party to surprise unsuspecting partygoers the next morning. 

Jim and Mari lived in Gaithersburg, Maryland, surrounded by countless albums and Grammys bearing Jim’s name alongside cat art and collectibles in every corner representing Mari’s lifelong love of cats. Their life was filled with love, music, cats, and so much laughter—and they were always, always, always together. 

Marianne and Jim created a life together dedicated to music and woven with love from people across the music industry, reflected in a recent benefit concert for them featuring legends in the folk, bluegrass, and world music, including The Seldom Scene, Tom Paxton, Bonnie Rideout, Big Howdy, Debi Smith and Tom Teasley, and emceed by Cathy Fink & Marcy.

Marianne leaves behind her son Christopher, sisters Linda and Gail, brother Dennis, and her soulmate husband Jim, along with countless other family members and friends who loved her fiercely and will always smile at the memory of her devilish pranks. She will be remembered as someone without a mean bone in her body but also as someone who would make a randy joke about that phrase.

Marianne Robeson passed away peacefully on August 14th, 2024, surrounded by Jim and family. Hospice was brief but wonderful, and she was not in pain. And it turns out Mari was right, M R Ducks after all.

We invite you to join us in celebrating Marianne on this webpage. Your condolences, stories, and pictures will be cherished.

Care entrusted to Thibadeau Mortuary Service, p.a., 124 E Diamond Ave, Gaithersburg, MD 20877-5009, 301-495-4950, www.InterFaithFunerals.com