ROBERT LAWRENCE FOYE
1998-2018
It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of our son, Robert Lawrence Foye on January 13th, 2018. He was 19 years old. Robert was the oldest of four children, with a brother and two sisters, and spent most of his life outside the US. We moved to Hong Kong when he was two months old. When Robert was three, we moved to London, where he later attended a neighborhood school (in his tie and cap) and learned to ride a bike in Hyde Park. After London, we spent six years in Jakarta, Indonesia, where Robert had Nerf gun battles with his friends, developed a love for nasi goreng and surfed in Bali with his parents and siblings. We later moved again, to Shanghai, China. After building a successful career in football during middle school, he was the star of his high school basketball team and won the coaches’ award in his senior year. He was very happy and well liked. We know that he had deep friendships with people all over the world, from at least 46 countries by our calculations.
Robert graduated from Shanghai Community International School with an IB Diploma before moving to Texas to attend Trinity University in San Antonio. Robert really enjoyed Trinity and was very happy with the learning environment, the campus and all the support and connections with the faculty and staff.
Robert took his role as the oldest sibling seriously, either to guide or advise, or to gleefully act as a provocateur. He was tall and lean with nutbrown wavy hair and hazel eyes like his father’s. He had keen powers of observation and a witty, usually contrarian comment to add to any discussion. His interests were wide-ranging: Imperial Japan, old-school rap music, stock picking, pro-basketball, and much more. He spoke and wrote Mandarin Chinese, and binge-read Wikipedia entries, following rabbit trails of information that caught his interest.
After his high school basketball career in Shanghai, he maintained his competitive mentality in grueling pickup games with his father, friends and members of the Trinity Community. He had great defensive skills, could drive to the basket and had a good three-point shot.
Last summer, Robert successfully completed a six-week internship in Shanghai and New York with Lagardere, a global French sports and media company, and would have continued in another internship with the company this next summer. Robert loved New York. He was comfortable in every part of the city, and his favorite pastime was exploring new neighborhoods.
Most recently, Robert had a wonderful winter break touring Japan with his family, during which he shared a room with his brother and one of his sisters and ate sushi by the platter. While visiting the cities of Fukuoka, Kyoto and Tokyo, Robert shared his knowledge of Japan’s history and culture.
Robert’s sartorial style consisted of a classic watch (a graduation gift from his parents), jeans, visually arresting sport shoes (his most recent pair was a bright camouflage) and a brown or black leather jacket (weather permitting).
Robert had a great, easy laugh and a big smile. He was a loyal friend. Even when he was direct or distracted, he always had a good heart and wanted to do the right thing. Robert was very high energy and struggled with some dependencies, but had rededicated himself to his studies and was excited about every one of his classes for the spring term.
His family and friends are heartbroken that he will not have a chance to mature into his potential and live a long, fulfilling life. We are deprived of his love as a son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend. Everyone will miss him dearly.
Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm, Friday, January 19, 2018 and Funeral Mass will be at 12:00 noon, Saturday, January 20, 2018 both at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, 6800 Buffalo Speedway, Houston, TX 77025. Interment will follow immediately after the mass at Glenwood Cemetery.
Robert is survived by his parents, Robert and Kristianna, his brother, William, and his sisters, Meredith and Annabel, plus extended family that includes four grandparents, four aunts, five uncles, and 14 cousins.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Robert’s memory to the Robert Lawrence Foye Scholarship Foundation. Donations may be mailed to RBC, 1001 Fannin St, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77002. If you have any questions about donations or if you would like a link to donate directly online, please email erika. rivera@rbc.com or call RBC at 713-853-0858.