We honor here members, friends and supporters of the American Council of the Blind who have impacted our lives in many wonderful ways. If you would like to submit a notice for this column, please include as much of the following information as possible.
Name (first, last, maiden if appropriate)
City of residence (upon passing)
State/province of residence (upon passing)
Other cities/states/countries of residence (places where other blind people may have known this person)
Occupation
Date of death (day if known, month, year)
Age
ACB affiliation (local/state/special-interest affiliates or national committees)
Deaths that occurred more than six months ago cannot be reported in this column.
William “Bill” Acker
May 1953-Aug. 23, 2015
William “Bill” Acker of Denver, Colo. died Aug. 23, 2015 due to complications of prostate cancer. He was 62.
Originally from New York, Bill attended the Lavelle School for the Blind, graduating in 1972. He moved to Colorado in 1979 to take a job with Mountain Bell. Bill was profiled in “Exploding The Phone,” a book about phone phreaking, written by Phil Lapsley. He spent 27 years at Mountain Bell, and was married to Lenora for 29 years.
Smithey Raeburn “Rae” Stubbs Ingley
Mrs. Smithey Raeburn “Rae” Stubbs Ingley, age 97, died Oct. 14, 2015 at Bethany Nursing Home in Vidalia, Ga., after a brief illness. She was a native of Tampa, Fla., living most of her life in Macon, Ga., and the last 15 years in Vidalia. She was a musician and choral music instructor for the Georgia Academy for the Blind, and a former member of the Wesleyan College faculty (director of the chorus, member of the voice faculty).
Rae began her musical career as a student of the late Conrad Murphree in Tampa. After two years as a student at Wesleyan Conservatory in Macon, she transferred to the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., studying under Arthur Kraft and receiving her bachelor of music and master of music degrees. She was awarded the Artists’ Diploma from Eastman, the highest award presented by the school for performance. Rae was preceded in death by her husband, Howard Ingley Jr.; sisters, Valerie Stubbs McCutchen and Daisy Stubbs Mickler Dickerson; and brother, William Oscar Stubbs.
She is survived by her sons, Dennis (Theresa) Ingley of Vidalia, Paul (Susan) Ingley of Rock Hill, S.C., and Alan (Dawn) Ingley of Atlanta; grandchildren, Jared (Avani) Ingley of Atlanta, Dyson Ingley of Atlanta, Lauren (Trey) Ellis of Nashville, Tenn., Cara Ingley of Dawsonville, Ga., Jon Ross Ingley of Athens, Ga., and Megan Ingley of Greenville, S.C.; and great-grandchildren, Simran Ingley and Kieran Ingley.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to Methodist Home for Children and Youth, PO Box 2525, Macon, GA 31203; Georgia Academy for the Blind, 2895 Vineville Ave., Macon, GA 31204; or Sweet Onion Animal Protection Society, PO Box 210, Vidalia, GA 30475.
George Illingworth
George Skene Illingworth, age 87, passed away Oct. 19, 2015 after a brief illness.
Born in Detroit, Mich., George was blind from birth. He attended the Michigan School for the Blind and the Perkins School for the Blind. He worked for American Community Mutual Insurance until his retirement. George was active in the Plymouth (Mich.) Lions Club, the Philomatheon Society of the Blind, and many other organizations advocating for the disabled. George moved to Canton in 2011 and joined the Jackson Lions Club. He was a member of John Knox Presbyterian Church and a volunteer with Walker Grade School. He loved teaching the students about blindness and overcoming disabilities.
George was preceded in death by his wife of 48 years, Suzanne Sirak Illingworth, and his brother, Leonard Illingworth. He was the beloved uncle of Gail (Ron) Arenstein, Gary (Linda) Sirak, Jane Sirak, and Mark (Marsha) Sirak. He was the uncle and great-uncle of many nieces and nephews.