July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Good-bye to Bobby (8/27/04)
Opinion
Jay County lost an original this week.
Bob Gillespie died.
If you knew Bob, you loved him.
Known to a generation as “Bobby,” Robert E. Gillespie was an unlikely figure to have transformed this community. But like the daughter of Charles and Florence Coldren and the daughter of Harold and Alma Green, Bob was a catalyst.
The parents of the three developmentally disabled children were spurred to action, demanding more for their kids’ future and doing what was necessary to make sure that future was as bright as possible.
Together, the three couples worked to establish the county’s first classes for children with special needs.
That was in 1958. Today, Jay-Randolph Developmental Services — which traces its roots to those first classes — serves dozens of children and adults who otherwise would have fallen through society’s cracks.
When Bob was born, back in 1950, he would have been called Mongoloid.
Later, he would have been classified as Down Syndrome.
Whatever the nomenclature, had he been born in the first half of the 20th century he would have been consigned to a life of limited opportunities. At best, he would have been kept within the confines of his home; at worst, he would have been warehoused by the state.
Like the Coldrens and the Greens, Robert and Fanny Gillespie wanted something better for Bob and kids like him.
And they were willing to transform their community to make it happen.
They weren’t prepared to settle for the status quo. They weren’t going to go quietly away. And they weren’t going to let their unrestricted love for their kids be undermined by the social stigmas of the day.
Thanks to their efforts, this community is a different place from the one that existed when their children were born.
Bob lived the longest of the three, and it was a good life, fulfilling and independent. He was actively engaged in his community and a friend to everyone who met him.
We’ll miss you, buddy. — J.R.
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Bob Gillespie died.
If you knew Bob, you loved him.
Known to a generation as “Bobby,” Robert E. Gillespie was an unlikely figure to have transformed this community. But like the daughter of Charles and Florence Coldren and the daughter of Harold and Alma Green, Bob was a catalyst.
The parents of the three developmentally disabled children were spurred to action, demanding more for their kids’ future and doing what was necessary to make sure that future was as bright as possible.
Together, the three couples worked to establish the county’s first classes for children with special needs.
That was in 1958. Today, Jay-Randolph Developmental Services — which traces its roots to those first classes — serves dozens of children and adults who otherwise would have fallen through society’s cracks.
When Bob was born, back in 1950, he would have been called Mongoloid.
Later, he would have been classified as Down Syndrome.
Whatever the nomenclature, had he been born in the first half of the 20th century he would have been consigned to a life of limited opportunities. At best, he would have been kept within the confines of his home; at worst, he would have been warehoused by the state.
Like the Coldrens and the Greens, Robert and Fanny Gillespie wanted something better for Bob and kids like him.
And they were willing to transform their community to make it happen.
They weren’t prepared to settle for the status quo. They weren’t going to go quietly away. And they weren’t going to let their unrestricted love for their kids be undermined by the social stigmas of the day.
Thanks to their efforts, this community is a different place from the one that existed when their children were born.
Bob lived the longest of the three, and it was a good life, fulfilling and independent. He was actively engaged in his community and a friend to everyone who met him.
We’ll miss you, buddy. — J.R.
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