Sarah L. “Sally” Gracie, educator-columnist
Sarah L. “Sally” Gracie, a former Baltimore County public schools educator who taught English and journalism, died Oct. 14 from a stroke at the Bryan West Medical Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. The former longtime Sudbrook Park resident was 76.
The former Sarah Lindsay Reed, the daughter of William J. Reed, a Prudential Insurance Co. agent, and his wife, Louise Ayres Reed, a Pikesville Middle School secretary, was born in Baltimore and raised in Sudbrook Park.
She was a 1961 graduate of Milford Mill High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in 1965 in English from the University of Maryland, College Park, where she was a member of Alpha Omicron Pi Sorority.
Ms. Gracie began her teaching career in 1965 at Catonsville High School, where she taught English and journalism. She later became a certified school librarian after studying at what is now Towson University, and worked as a librarian in Baltimore County public schools until retiring in 1998.
In 1998, she moved to Twisp, Washington, to be near her elder son. She became actively involved in the community library and art gallery and for 15 years wrote a column for The Methow Valley News.
“Sally speaks her mind, prods when necessary, follows her curiosity and digs for information,” Don Nelson, editor of The Methow Valley News, wrote in an editorial. “She’s not afraid to express passion, emotion, joy, sorrow, humor, dismay or indignation. Like our other correspondents, she has always been reporter, part observer and entirely an invested resident of the valley.” Ms. Gracie moved in 2016 to Lincoln, Nebraska, to be near her younger son. She was active in the local book club and Alcoholics Anonymous and had recently celebrated five years of sobriety, family members said.
She was an accomplished cook and enjoyed reading and gardening and was a dedicated political observer and commentator. She was also a pet fancier.
A celebration of life service will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. Nov. 17 at the Knights of Columbus hall, 1010 Frederick Road, Catonsville.
Ms. Gracie is survived by her two sons, Robert Reed Gracie, of Twisp, and David Reed Gracie, of Lincoln; a sister, Elizabeth Reed English ,of Charlotte, North Carolina; three grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. Her marriage to Robert A. Gracie ended in divorce.