by Charles H. Crawford
Our American Council of the Blind family has lost a dear friend, a valued member and a tireless worker who lifted us all up by her dedication to carrying out her duties without concern for how hard or how long it would take. Anne Fesh passed away this morning (Aug. 23, 2001) and while her physical battle was lost to the disease that took her life, her spirits never faltered nor her caring for all of us who she has had to leave behind.
While Anne Fesh was mostly in the background of all our work at the national office, she stood in the foreground of the very reason for ACB’s success. Anne Fesh did her job and did it well. She took every building block and placed it at the foundation of our efforts.
Thank you, Anne. Thank you for being who you were and making us in real ways who we are. Thank you for not complaining when resources were low or when you had a right to be upset. Thank you for staying the course and showing the rest of us that with all of your education and knowledge, it is really the small but steady things like keeping on task and being there that count and make a difference.
ACB and all of us at the national office will miss you and there will be times when we will not really know what to say except you have earned our respect as a person, our love as a friend and our admiration for just being who you were. We pray for your peace and rest.
We give you this final tribute not for the day or the moment, but for all the days you shared with us and for all the days to come in which you will not be forgotten.
Remembrances
(Editor’s Note: Below are just a few of the messages of condolence which came to our office as we attempted to cope with the illness and loss of our friend, Anne Fesh.)
Dear Anne,
Thank you for your openness, your caring, your dedication and your spirit. May God keep you in His arms.
— Rob Hill
I have known Anne ever since she came to work at ACB. In fact, I think I was President at the time. I respected Anne very much for what she did in our office and for ACB.
Anne was the person who did much of what I call the grunt work. She did whatever she was asked to do and many things that other people in the office wouldn’t do. It has been some time since I have worked with Anne, but this is how I remember her.
Anne will be missed by all, and it is a sad day.
— LeRoy Saunders
I only knew Anne through a couple of phone conversations, but the tribute to her contained in this e-mail says a lot about how her office colleagues felt about her. Hugs to all of the national office staff as you deal with the loss of a friend.
— Berl Colley
Any time you lose a valued member of staff day-to-day default that you know is always there for so many years, it breaks up the family. We must regret her passing, and never forget to be gentle with each other.
— Lynne Koral
Hi everyone! I was sorry to hear that Anne Fesh passed away. The tribute written by Charlie was really touching. I went through a bout with cancer four years ago so understand some of what she experienced. ACB has indeed lost a good employee and friend. It will be hard to carry on even though that’s what we must do.
— Kathy Brockman
Dear Charlie and Penny and all ACB staff,
Anne’s passing is a loss to us all. Your tribute to her was touching and so appropriate for all our feelings about her. Please share with us if a special fund or donation as a memorial is being planned. The camaraderie and love shared and expressed by all of you are a blessing to all of us. Thank you.
— Teddie-Joy Remhild
I visited Anne in the hospital yesterday and just wanted to add that her partner, Kathi Wolfe, told me that Anne has requested memorial tributes go to ACB. Many members don’t know Anne, but she knew all of you. She worked on the membership certification and she kept our computers working and she worked in the registration office at the ACB conventions. Besides that, she managed the office procedures, things like seeing to shipments and deliveries and technicians for the fax machines and technicians to fix the phones. She stayed on top of all that work, and still had the understanding to stay on the phone talking for half an hour to someone who was terrified because they were going blind. She stayed with them as long as they needed to talk, and then she stayed late to get her other work done. She worked until the last day she could work until her illness stopped her. ACB was honored to have someone like Anne Fesh for those brief years she gave to us.
— Billie Jean Keith