Ralph Babbitt Bilby

Ralph Babbitt Bilby passed away on July 16, 2024. He was born on April 10, 1945, in Walla Walla, Washington, the first son of Ralph Mansfield Bilby and Mary Eleanore Babbitt Bilby. The family moved to Flagstaff after the end of WWII, and there Ralph grew up as one of six children, surrounded by grandparents, aunts, uncles and multitudes of first, second and third cousins.

Ralph graduated from Flagstaff High School in 1963 after he was elected Student Body President. He then spent two years in the Army and served in Korea.

After his years of service, he attended the University of Arizona working on an Anthropology degree. In 1974 he graduated with a Master’s Degree from Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Ralph moved to New York City and began work with Royal Dutch Shell. After several years in business, Ralph’s life undertook a serious redirection. He became involved with an innovative non-profit called Fountain House. They worked with people battling chronic mental illnesses. Rather than institutionalizing them, Fountain House developed the “Clubhouse Model.” Instead of treating them as “clients” or “patients” they were designated as “members.” Members had ownership of the clubhouse organization. They were involved in maintaining it, caring for it and even served on the board of directors.

Ralph particularly guided the Transitional Employment Placement program. By finding basic work suitable for the members, (often with Fortune 500 companies) they were afforded both income and dignity. This plan was quite successful in providing dedicated workers for these various companies. Frequently these companies became financial supporters of the Fountain House program.

After Ralph developed the work options for the members, he resigned from FH and joined the Clubhouse International organization. Through them he worked to extend the establishment of the clubhouse model all over the world. The long-term goal was to change the way societies viewed and treated people struggling with chronic mental illnesses. His work became widely recognized as he engaged in accreditation and consultation in many countries. He received an especially prestigious Reintegration Award from the Eli Lily Company for his innovative work.

In his family, he was adored by his many nieces and nephews! His generosity, accessibility and sense of humor made him a mainstay of the family. He loved shopping for antiques, here and abroad. He acquired an extensive collection of beautiful art pieces and unusual memorabilia, many of them one of a kind keepsakes from every part of the world. Each had a unique story which he loved to recount. To visit his home was like entering a small museum.

After retirement, he still maintained relationships within the Clubhouse community, including evaluating and consulting with organizations desiring to be accredited as Clubhouses. He now had time for golf. Through exploring estate-sales with his sisters, he continued his collecting.

Ralph loved to read, and his walls were covered with books: histories, biographies, fiction and non-fiction of every kind. It was his joy to hear what you were reading and give you a recommendation for what to read next!

Though in his latter years, he struggled with Parkinson’s disease, Ralph continued to show himself the soul of kindness and generosity. Beginning from within his own family, he extended compassion to people throughout the world. His gentleness and kindness shone on strangers, friends and family equally. He lived his life as an example of the best of humanity.

In death, he was preceded by his sisters Diane Bilby Beuerle and Patty Bilby Moore. He is survived by siblings Richard Joseph Bilby, Meg Bilby Crossman and Susan Bilby Ells as well as countless nieces, nephews and grand-nieces and nephews and many cousins. He will be sorely missed by all of them.

In lieu of flowers, those who would like to honor his life may consider giving contributions to the work of:

Clubhouse International

845 3rd Avenue, 6th Floor

NYC, NY 10022

A memorial service in Phoenix at his senior residence, Clarendale, (located at 3233 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix 85018) will take place at 10 AM on July 27th.

In Flagstaff, a gathering at Noon on Aug 3rd will be held at the Nordic Center, 20 minutes northwest of Flagstaff on Highway 89A.