Robin Summerfield has deep roots in the people and traditions of the Allegheny Mountain region of Maryland and West Virginia. He completed undergraduate study in Political Science at Frostburg State University and earned a Master of Social Work with concentration on rural practice and organizing from West Virginia University. His professional background includes working as a professional chef and commercial pilot as well as experience in social work, community organizing, nonprofit leadership, and political campaigning. Since 2007, he has served as Western Maryland Field Representative to U.S. Senator Ben Cardin. He has previously served as President of the Maryland Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, as Secretary of Mountainside Baroque, and as a member of the Executive Board of the Allegany County Branch of the NAACP.  He currently serves as President of the Cumberland Scottish Rite Foundation, Secretary of the Cumberland Masonic Temple, Inc., and as a member of the Community Trust Foundation Advisory Council and NAACP Community Relations Board.  He has been a member of the Maryland State Democratic Central Committee since 2010 and was elected as a Delegate to the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

Robin discovered his passion for music listening to hand me down recordings of everything from classical to jazz, country, blues, and rock-n-roll.  With his first musical instruments – a Conn spinet organ and vintage Stella acoustic and Kent electric guitars – he mingled formal training in the works of Bach with self-study using the Mel Bay guitar method.  By middle school, Robin had heard the siren call of hard rock, punk, and new wave and he has played guitar in bands ever since.