Billie was a wonderful neighbor and friend.  She always made my daughters feel weclome, bought lots of girl scout cookies, displayed Samantha and Laurel's artwork, and we would meet for lunch at her favorite place, Grill 29 at Brookwood.  She loved books and always kept up with current events. When my oldest was applying for a scholarship, she wrote a beautiful recommendation for her and was very helpful with her resume.  
Billie loved her family, her husband Jim, her dog Smokie,  and her cat Red. Billie took great care of her home and yard and with William's help, her yard was always lovely in every season.
She took the time to write the best Christmas cards and to receive a note from her was a treasure.  
Billie was loved by all of us.  


Conclusion of Tribute from Robinson Elementary Class

Note that undeniably beatific smile at the photographer! 

Billie Doughty Holladay never gave up on any of us. Over the years, she opened herself up to us as much more than our beloved teacher and mentor. So many of us enjoyed the privilege of knowing her as an adult friend. She still wanted to know what we thought, what we were learning, where we were traveling, how life was turning out for her once “kids.” Individually and collectively, we sought out her company. Many met her for lunch monthly, others called or emailed regularly, some planned their trips back to Birmingham around a visit with Billie. She welcomed us all with open arms and an open heart. What a joy to know that she genuinely loved our company as much as we treasured hers.  

Her “kids” loved her throughout our entire lives. She lives in our hearts. We hear her voice in our minds. And each one of us credit her with our continued love of learning, seeking, questioning, and growing. She is an indelible mark on our lives. She is still sitting on that perch, encouraging us to be worthy of our talents and to keep reaching for the stars.  

Rest easy, Billie.  You so deserve it.     


--Continued Tribute from Robinson Elementary Class 1958-1962--

That was the moment she said she decided to do something else. 

We like to think that the “something else” and the “something special brewing” was the trial enrichment class at Robinson Elementary. That was the very class for which we had been chosen as participants. The truth about our class, she said, was that no one wanted to teach it; no one knew how! It was a happy accident (and our good fortune) that they picked someone smarter than all of us—Miss Billie Doughty. Undaunted by our smart-alecky tactics, she set out to capture our over-active imaginations and misguided energies. She loved our questions and led us to seek our own understandings, never allowing us to forget who was the smartest.

As a group we were quite the handful. As we began rotating for subjects such as P.E., Art, Music, etc., we were our most mischievous selves. Admittedly, teachers wrote nasty notes to Miss Doughty telling on us.  “We acted out; didn’t respect the teacher; and just made their days miserable.” Billie just read the notes, tore them up.  Looking us each straight in the eye, she chastised us for behaving in ways which did not behoove us as intelligent people. She frequently had to take up for us with other teachers and the principle. All the while she was admonishing us that we knew better and that she was disappointed in us. She had us under her thumb and she knew it. Later, she admitted to some of us how difficult it was at times to keep a straight face while reprimanding us for things she found clever and amusing. Billie Doughty made teaching us look easy.

It is obvious in this photo taken by one of the class that she was having the time of her life. After a very long field trip day of wrangling us like a herd of cats, she posed for this shot. “Our Lady of Perpetual Inspiration and Flexible Joints” was totally composed, unruffled, and proudly postured, in her pearl necklace and perfectly draped dress. Note that

A Tribute to Billie Doughty Holladay
Compiled from Memories of Her Students at Robinson Elementary School
Class of 1958-1962

We want Billie Doughty Holladay’s family and friends to know and love the Billie we all knew and loved.  She deserves for her story as a phenomenal teacher to be told. Too many educators never really know the difference they have made. Fortunately, many of us had found our own ways of thanking Billie for being the important influence in our formative years. We know she took great pride in everything “each of her kids” had done.  

As her “special class,” we all believed that we were her favorites. Perhaps Billie Holladay made all she met feel special, but we were cast under her spell from the first day she strolled into our classroom. Long and tall, the young Miss Doughty moved with a grace and confidence we had never seen before in a teacher. She could really rock the shirtwaist! There wasn’t a single day she didn’t own the entire class. She ran a tight ship while making each of us feel unique and capable. An enigma to each of us, Miss Doughty was a brilliant, dynamic young woman who would sit on her desk, facing us. From her perch, she challenged us to think—beyond, to question and to fall in love with learning. We were enchanted by her brain, her demeanor, her swag. After four years of Billie’s tutelage, high school was no big deal. We were so lucky to have her in our lives.

And to think, it almost did not happen. At a class reunion only a few years ago, she pulled back the curtain on her earliest years in teaching. Ahh, Billie, we hardly knew ye! She relayed that she was too young to teach when she completed Birmingham-Southern. Apparently an early mentor told her to pursue her Master’s of Education degree because there might be something special brewing for her in the Birmingham Public School System. She also told us that someone at Vanderbilt advised her that since she was a woman, she would never be a full professor. That was the mom


All our classmates 1958-62 at Robinson School were blessed to have MISS BILLIE for 4 years.
A very large part of who I am is because of the motivation and direction she provided. Throughout my life whenever I reached out to her, she responded quickly with a sense of direction I came to know was coming. I will miss her. 

AVIS DE DÉCÈS

Billie Doughty Holladay

12 mars 1931 – 8 octobre 2018

Ridout's Valley Chapel

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