William L Lewis

The family will gather for a Life Celebration on March 1st, from 2-5 pm at the home of David and Amy Lewis.

Born December 13, 1930, in Jacksonville Fla, Bill was the middle son born to Edith (Culpepper) and Robert Fulton Lewis. His older brother Robert Fulton Jr and younger brother Jack Charles completed the family.

Bill’s father worked for the railroad and relocated frequently as the highly coveted depression-era jobs were few and far between. The family eventually settled in Savannaha GA where Bill and his brothers attended school.

Bill was in the first grade when the teacher realized he had a serious visual problem and contacted his parents. While at the ophthalmologist both Bill and his brother Jack were diagnosed with the same condition, retinitis pigmentosa, one of numerous types, for which there was no cure. (This particular type of retinitis pigmentosa did not worsen with age, and Bill’s vision remained 20/200, considered legally blind, through most of his adult life).

Over the next nine years the brothers formed quite a bond as they struggled in the sighted classroom structure. By middle school they were unable to read the textbooks, making poor grades and developing growing feelings of inadequacy. During a visit to an eye specialist at John’s Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland the physician confirmed that there was no cure for their vision but gave them hope by informing them that there was a such a thing as a school for the blind. After looking into this possibility within the month Bill and Jack were both enrolled at the Georgia Academy for the Blind in Macon, Georgia.

This turned out to be a godsend in more ways than one. The boys were taught braille and how to type, and their textbooks were recorded, enabling them to perform in a classroom equal to that of sighted children. The other benefit was extracurricular activities. These benefits allowed the boys to improve their self-esteem and perform to higher standard academically. Bill became very active in drama and the debate team. He also played football and other sports. The school for the blind enhanced their social skills as well as their academic skills.

After three years, Bill graduated from high school and enrolled in Armstrong College of Savannah. While at Armstrong, he was a member of the Drama club and played some major roles in theater productions. In addition, Bill was selected to be the Grand Marshal of a parade held in Savannah. He was also selected as one of the top ten students in the upcoming graduating class. He graduated with an Associates in Arts from Armstrong in June, 1953.

After his two years at Armstrong, Bill enrolled at the University of Georgia. He graduated in August, 1954 earning his Bachelor of Arts Degree. He then enrolled at the University of Kansas, where he received a Master’s Degree in Social Work. After receiving his master’s degree, Bill had no problem obtaining a job in his chosen profession and moved to Wichita, Ks to pursue employment.

During this time Bill attended the First Presbyterian Church where he met a beautiful young schoolteacher named Joyce Wilbur while the two were taking dance lessons with their Sunday School group. The pair were smitten and it wasn’t long before Bill asked for her hand. Bill and Joyce were married November 1, 1959 and Bill quickly adopted Joyce’s children, Temple and Terese.

Joyce and Bill had three more children, David Fulton, Barry Alan, and Brian Wilbur - all sons - much to the chagrin of Terese who longed for a baby sister, but who doted on her baby brothers anyway.

The family moved to Hays, KS in 1966, and Bill worked at High Plains Mental Health Clinic until returning to Wichita in 1978. He went to work at St. Joseph Hospital.

Bill retired from St Joseph Hospital when his grand-daughter, Emily, was born in 1991. Joyce and Bill cared for Emily for several months after Terese returned to work until Emily’s spot at daycare became available. Joyce also retired from full-time teaching but kept an active hand in by substituting regularly, mostly at College Hill Elementary around the corner from where they lived.

Bill was famous for his elaborate story telling. All the generations of Lewis children can fondly remember sitting on his knee and hearing the antics of Bre’r Rabbit and Bre’r Fox in the Briar Patch. Bill incorporated his earlier acting skills into his story telling by giving voice and personality to each of the characters, and usually these stories incorporated said child into the plot as a central focus. It was a good thing the rabbit and fox originated in the south as they always had a decidedly southern accent.

Bill was a technology enthusiast and utilized all forms of the ‘newest thing’ in his daily life. He had reel-to-reel tape players long before even 8-Tracks were common, and moved to cassettes, and CDs as that technology advanced. He had phonograph players that played 78’s and then 33’s. He utilized the personal computers as soon as they became available and utilized the various advancements of talking software to stay abreast of communications in his field and organizations that he was associated with. He was very prolific communicating with all his cronies via email.

Bill and Joyce were active members in the Kansas Association of Blind and Visually Impaired (KABVI) organization and attended annual conventions all over the United States where they would meet up with Jack and his wife Carolyn. Bill also enjoyed his participation in the Toastmasters and was always ready with a humorous story or anecdote. He spent some of his free time editing news magazines for non-profit organizations, the last being ACB Diabetics in Action.

When Bill turned 60 he “noticed a fog in the space between me and the usual blurred objects in the room”. The doctor told him the retinitis pigmentosa was starting up again and would progress until all was black. As Bill recollected, “the doctor was right, but it took 15 years before the crayon box was out of all colors but black”. It was an adjustment, becoming totally blind, but Bill handled it with his usual aplomb and became even more reliant on his computer with the talking software.

Joyce and Bill traveled some in retirement, continuing to attend the conventions, and they also went to Hawaii. As a special gift one year they took all the kids and grandkids to Savannah Georgia to visit Jack and Caroyln. They did all the sightseeing highlights in Savannah and spent one day swimming in the ocean at Tybee Island. They spent a weekend stopover in Orlando Florida and lounged on the white-sand beaches there while all the kids swam in the ocean.

For the most part both Joyce and Bill had good health and enjoyed attending exercise classes at the YMCA. They were active in their church, Grace Presbyterian, especially with their Sunday School Group, the Liners. They enjoyed Music Theater and had season tickets for several years until mobility became more of a problem.

Bill lost Joyce, the love of his life, on Nov 16, 2019.

Bill was also predeceased by his parents, brother Bob, son Temple and granddaughter Emily Gwinner.

He leaves behind daughter Terese Lewis (Charlie Gwinner), sons David (Amy), Barry, and Brian (Patricia Creed), grandchildren Lucas Deaton, Phillip Gwinner, Justin (Erin) Lewis, Lindsay (Matthew) Brown, Clinton (Hayley) Lewis, great-grandchildren Kayleigh Deaton, Elaine Brown, Everett Brown, and great-great grandson Azai Jackson.

Bill will be missed by all who knew him and remembered always for his embellished story telling and great sense of humor.