The web accessibility field lost a pioneer and powerful advocate when Dick Banks succumbed to cancer this week. Dick was Chief Technology Officer for EASI (Equal Access to Software and Information). More information on his passing is available on the EASI web site.
Dick was always an enthusiastic and knowledgeable advocate for accessibility. He had been active in web accessibility since the early 90s, being a list moderator for some of the earliest accessibility listservs. EASI was among the first of WebAIM’s partners when we started in 1999 and we collaborated with Dick much in those early years, through conference presentations and other activities. Throughout the years, Dick has been prevalent at accessibility conferences. He was a presenter and moderator for the EASI webinar series – he participated, even though he was ill, in the EASI webinar I provided just 3 weeks ago. We at WebAIM will miss his smiling face in the audience of conference sessions, his witty sense of humor in future webinars, and his passion for technology and accessibility.
Our condolences go out to his family and to Norm Coombs, who was a best friend and business partner with Dick.