Remembrance by Matt Evett
It is a true pleasure to be able to reflect on the life of Richard Bailey. He was a pillar of Saint Clare’s and a very dear and close friend to my family. He was an especially close friend to my father, Doug (who was the rector here for almost thirty years), and I was lucky to spend many hours with the both of them, especially during our biannual trout fishing trips on the Au Sable river. He is godfather to my son, Paul.
Most people called him Dick, but I always referred to him as Richard, even as a teenager. I attended Sunday school here in the 1970’s with Richard’s children, Nonee (two grades above me), and Andrew (a grade lower). In the 2000’s, after Richard married Julia Huttar Bailey—a former and long-time music director here—they guided their adopted daughter, Oceana, through the same education program.
Richard was a professor of English at the UM and was highly respected for his research on American dialects, especially on Black English. He was president of the Dictionary Society of North America. One of my favorite tricks of his was his ability to identify where people grew up by asking them to pronounce a few words or phrases: “what do you call the top of a house?” (roof), “what do you call a small river?” (creek), “what kind of nut can be made into a pie?” (pecan), etc. He headed the English department for several years, and, toward the end of his career, held a named chair, for which he was extremely and justifiably proud. Some of you may have heard Prof. Anne Kurzan’s show, That’s What They Say, on public radio—Anne was one of Richard’s advisees and protégés.
In terms of service to the larger community, Richard was an elected trustee to Washtenaw Community College continuously from 1974 until his death. The library there is now named after him.
He served in many leadership roles at Saint Clare’s, chairing several committees and acting as the vestry warden more than once. He was a member and president of the Guild of Scholars of the Episcopal Church.
He particularly relished opportunities to serve as a reader during services. One of his favorite readings was from the book of Daniel, the story of Nebuchadnezzar’s golden idol. In the story the king declares that, “at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the golden idol that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up; and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace”. The declaration is repeated several times throughout the reading, with Richard becoming happier and happier with each repetition of the long list of musical instruments. (“at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the golden idol that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up….) At the end of the story the king checks on the furnace room where the three “scofflaws” have been thrown into the furnace. Richard would milk the line, whispering softly, “Shadrak, Mishak, Abednego?….”
One of his favorite hymns was 412, “Earth and All Stars”. When we got to the line, “Knowledge and truth, loud sounding wisdom, sing
to the Lord a new song!”, someone would nudge him, since he was not shy about sharing his own wisdom on a great many subjects!
It is hard for me to believe that he died 15 years ago, in the spring of 2011 just as the crocuses were blooming, as I can still effortlessly imagine him sitting in the chairs on the floor of the sanctuary, here. He brought so much to this church: time, treasure, and a huge heart. I loved him like a father and still feel his presence in this place.
