Cover next page > title: Seeing Language in Sign : The Work of William C. Stokoe author

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Page people talk about the honorary degree and are delighted. People recognize the appropriateness of it.
Bill was, I believe, honored and pleased when he accepted the degree. I was emotional when I gave it to him. Ruth sat right in the front row right next to my wife. Ruth was becoming ill at that time with Alzheimer's disease. It was a very difficult time for Bill, and it was at the same time a wonderful time for him to receive the degree. I could seethe struggle going on inside him. He received the degree, sat on the stage, but his heart and his mind in large part were down in that front row with Ruth.
It was along ceremony. He actually had to leave before the ceremony was completely over. I thought it was a lovely thing to do. It was clear that Ruth needed him and it was clear that he belonged with her. He got up very quietly and very graciously walked off the stage, walked down and took his wife out of the audience to a place where she would be more comfortable. It was a very emotional time in my tenure as president. Armstrong recalls that Bill received along standing ovation and that he "was genuinely pleased and gratified. I think the wound was at least partially healed."26
That same month, the Department of Linguistics and Interpreting at Gallaudet sponsored the second in a series of international conferences entitled "Theoretical Issues in Sign Language Research" Stokoe was asked to present a "historical perspective" on sign language research. He accepted the invitation, although he was still angry about the department's neglect of Baker-Shenk and Cokely. (Neither had been hired by Gallaudet after the closing of the lab. The department had, however, found a prominent place in its library for Stokoe's extensive collection of articles and books on sign language, rescuing it from the boxes in the corner.)
Stokoe's acceptance of the invitation reflected a softening attitude toward Gallaudet, but it also reflected his wish to maintain contact with others in his field. The opportunity to meet with and address anew generation of sign language researchers was irresistible. Calling his presentation "a personal view" he

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