08/24/2026
This is a tough post to write- Our co-founder of Getting in Touch with Literacy has passed away.
My heart is hurting that we have lost another incredible person and legend in our field of blindness and visual impairments. The impact of her accomplishments will continue even though she is gone.
I first met Cay when she taught our braille class while she was studying for her doctorate at FSU. I feel blessed I was able to work with her closely the last few years planning the Getting in Touch with Literacy Conferences that she and her close friend and colleague, Janie Blome, founded and ran for many many years until Nicole Johnson and I with their guidance took over planning them in 2025 so that they could enjoy retirement. I just wish she could’ve enjoyed it longer. She truly deserved it!
Martha Cay Holbrook, 71, passed away peacefully at North Shore Hospice in Vancouver, British Columbia on August 22, 2026. She was a cherished sister, aunt and friend and her presence will be deeply missed. Cay is lovingly remembered by her sister, Jane Henderson, brother Corley Holbrook (Donna), nephews David Henderson (Brandy), Carter Henderson (Lindsey), and Sam Holbrook (Megan). Cay was also a great-aunt to two grand-nephews (Theo and Jack Henderson) and two grand-nieces (Tallulah and Findley Henderson). She was predeceased by her father, Carl Holbrook and Mother Sara Caswell Holbrook. A Memorial Service will be held at St. David's United Church 1525 Taylor Way in West Vancouver on (date and time). A Memorial Service will also be held at Faith Community Methodist Church in Jacksonville, Florida at a later date.
Cay's maternal grandmother lost her vision due to glaucoma, and Cay knew from an early age that she wanted to help people with loss of vision. She began her career as a teacher of students with visual impairments during her undergraduate pre-service teacher training program at Florida State University (FSU). She also received her master's and doctorate degrees from FSU. Cay's first faculty position was at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. After three years she moved to Little Rock to assume a faculty position at The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR). While there she also worked with the Jimmy Carter Presidential Center in preparing vision professionals in China. She remained at UALR for eight years and in 1998, moved to Vancouver, British Columbia to join the faculty at the University of British Columbia.
Along with her dear friend and professional collaborator, Alan Koenig, Cay worked on defining a process to determine learning and literacy media for students with visual impairments through a data-driven collaborative team approach. This process resulted in one of twelve textbooks that have been written or edited by Cay and her collaborators. She has received numerous awards and honors for her professional accomplishments.
In Cay's name, donations may be made to St. David's United Church or North Shore Hospice.
Image: An senior woman with wavy, shoulder-length gray-brown hair looks directly at the camera with a calm, thoughtful expression. She wears tortoiseshell-patterned glasses and a light purple/lavender eyelet blouse. Her chin rests gently on her hand, elbow propped up, in a relaxed portrait pose. She’s photographed indoors, with a light-colored kitchen or counter area visible softly blurred in the background.
fil:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/ef/15/4F2E8E04-5477-4A66-A2D0-C32D6FE65284/Martha_Holbrook_Service_Announcement_2.pdf
Tuesday August 25, 2026 at 11 am.St. David's United Church.
