Read America recently lost its grandfather.

In the early 90s before Phono-Graphix had a name and a logo, it had Brian McGuinness. He loved our silly drawings, he loved us, and he knew a good idea when he heard it. Very late on a cold March night, in the tiny room allotted to the creation of what would become Phono-Graphix, I sketched a fat cat on a mat while my father-in-law stood reading some old inspirational plaques from my Montessori school administrator days.

"If it’s true that there’s ‘nothing stronger than an idea whose time has come’, then all you really need is some money to get your reading scheme off the ground."

Within the week we had a business consultant, a new Macintosh, a credit card terminal, a proper name for my work, and a meeting with a trademark attorney.

"But keep the drawings," he said, as he left for the airport.

The money Brian invested in Read America also allowed my husband co-author Geoff to quit his job and participate in the completion of the advanced code and multisyllable levels, and to help me collect data for our research (Carmen McGuinness, et al, Orton Annals of Dyslexia, 1996). Although we recently said goodbye to Brian for the last time, we will always remember the kindness and love he extended to our mission.

In loving memory of my father-in-law Grampy Briney.

- Carmen McGuinness

Remembering Brian

Donate a book to a children’s hospice, in Brian’s memory