Legal Secretary and Pro Bono Coordinator Robin Simmons will be retiring after 46 years at North Penn Legal Services. NPLS wants to wish her all the best as she enters a new chapter in her life, and thank her for the years of service.

After graduating community college, Robin started as a secretary working for Lehigh Valley Legal Services in 1979, one of the firms that eventually merged into NPLS.

“When I started, I was a young mom and I had one son,” Robin said. “The environment was friendly, the building was close to where I lived, everything was convenient. The (Executive Director at the time) was a mom; she had young kids. If school was out, we could bring our kids to work.”

As Robin spent more time at NPLS, she added more responsibilities to her role. She began to handle the client trust account, Lehigh Valley aging funding, and Northampton county aging funding. Later, Robin assisted with pro bono work and custody workshops.

Robin said one of the most rewarding parts of the job is seeing successful pro bono cases.

“When I refer a pro bono case and it comes back to me that they won the case, especially with unemployment cases, that makes me happy” Robin said. “Some cases I think, ‘They can’t win this one, why I am I referring it?’ But then I refer it anyway and they win it and that makes me happy.”

Robin also mentioned the camaraderie between co-workers as a factor that kept her at NPLS for so long.

“They’re just like family,” Robin said. “When we started out, we all had young children and then our kids grew up and we were (still) here. We all knew each other’s problems and stuff like that.”

In retirement, Robin plans to travel more with her three sisters. In January, Robin and her sisters are taking a trip to Louisville, Kentucky, to see family members she hasn’t met before and attend a celebration for her great aunt.

“We’re actually going there to find our roots,” Robin said.

NPLS wants to thank Robin for her hard work and dedication, and wishes her a happy retirement!