TO THE CHAPTER INVISIBLE
"He was very proud of his heritage and culture as a Black man. He was one of the people who opened doors."
bring the annual Florida Classic game — the match-up between two of Florida’s Historically Black Universities, Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman — to Or- lando and to get Disney to help sponsor it. The Windermere man was also a husband for nearly 30 years to Deidre, whom he met at a local NAACP meeting after her sister introduced them. That’s all part of the legacy of Billingslea, who died Friday at 79. “He made a large impact on many people and organizations throughout Central Florida and beyond. He will be greatly missed,” said George Kalogridis, president of Walt Disney World Resort, in a state- ment. Friends remember Brother Billingslea as a gregarious man with a sophisticated fash- ion sense who took charge of Disney’s mi- nority outreach and was heavily involved in many community organizations. He was an early pioneer of pushing for corporate social responsibility, said Marc Morial, CEO of the National Urban League and a former New Orleans mayor. “He was very proud of his heritage and culture as a black man,” said Hubert Grimes, interim president at Bethune- Cookman. “He was one of the people who opened doors.” Back then, there was no hospitality man- agement school in the region, so Billing- slea pushed for one — not just a place to train cooks, but one with an emphasis on educating future executives and leaders in the industry. It opened at Bethune- Cookman in 1986 and was named for him last year. He later became a trustee at the school, keeping his post and working with four different presidents over the years to make him the longest-serving trustee on
the current board before his death.
It seemed like he knew everyone.
“Bob had Facebook friends before there was a Facebook,” Morial said.
When Billingslea retired from Disney in 2012, the U.S. Congress slowed for a moment to recognize his tenure at Disney; U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., read a tribute that mentioned his colorful life: raised by grandparents in Ohio, played professional drums at 16, graduated from Kent State University with a sociology degree, took a job as a probation officer. Besides his wife, his survivors include his son, Robert Billingslea Jr.; two grandchil- dren; and a great-grandchild.
By Gabrielle Russon, Special to the Journal
Publishing achievement for more than 100 years
THE JOURNAL FALL 2017 | 223
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