[Reading-hall-of-fame] Wally "Famous" Amos

[Thomas Sticht]

Hello, All! I just learned yesterday that Wally "Famous" Amos passed away
earlier this month. He was 88 years of age, and during most of that time he
served as a strong advocate for literacy instruction for both children and
adults.

In 2002, I went to Louisville, Kentucky to do a presentation at the
national conference of the National Center for Family Literacy (Now known
as the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL). During the convention,
presenters and others associated with the NCFL were loaded onto a bus for a
trip to the famous racetrack, Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby.
We were there to participate in an evening social event.

On the bus from downtown Louisville, where the NCFL offices were located, I
ended up in a seat with a member of the NCFL Board of Directors, a famous
member at that. It was the cookie man widely known as Wally "Famous" Amos!

As we chatted about who we were and why we were at the conference I learned
that Amos and I shared a common thread of time in our backgrounds. We were
both born in 1936, he in July me in September, we had both dropped out of
an education activity to enlist in the U.S. Air Force. He had dropped out
of high school and enlisted in the Air Force from 1955 to 1959. I had
dropped out of college and enlisted in the Air Force from 1957 to 1961.

While in the Air Force, Amos pursued the General Educational Development
(GED) degree and received it before he received an honorable discharge.
During my Air Force service I completed over a year's worth of college
credits in night courses that I transferred toward getting a degree when I
got out of the Air Force with an honorable discharge.

While pursuing a variety of jobs following his Air Force service, Amos
developed an interest in helping children and adults achieve growth in
literacy skills. In 1979 he became a national spokesperson for Literacy
Volunteers of America and later a member of the Board of Directors of the
NCFL, in addition to undertaking numerous other activities to promote
literacy education.

In an online interview (1), Amos was asked, "Is there a generation cycle of
illiteracy?" He answered,
  "Absolutely, illiteracy can be passed on. But there are adults who break
that cycle. You can do it if you want to and I don't think the question
need be whether it is hard or easy. The question should always be, is it
possible? And everything is possible, you've just got to find a way to make
it work."

In another online interview (2), Amos said, I encourage parents to read
aloud to children at least from birth to 6 years old. I'd really like them
to do it beforehand while they're in the womb."

For over a quarter of a century Amos continuously advocated for parents as
teachers of their children and also praised and exalted the work of adult
literacy educators who have made it possible for many thousands of
previously underprepared parents to read aloud and serve as first teachers
of literacy for their children.

The extraordinary life of Wally "Famous" Amos extended way beyond the
cookie oven and warmed up the lives of thousands of adults who have become
their children's first literacy teachers. A unique legacy for a cookie man!

Tom Sticht

Web Addresses for Online Interviews with Famous Amos mentioned above:

(1) Amos interview re. Generational illiteracy:
http://www2.hawaii.edu/~adamson/vol45a1.htm

(2) Amos interview re. Encourage parents to read aloud:
https://www.biography.com/personality/wally-amos
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