LYONS, WILLIAM MICHAEL "MIKE" III, 64, a U.S. Air Force veteran, passed away January 31, 2009 at Veterans Memorial Hospital. He was a volunteer at Veterans Hospital and a member of the Blinded Veterans Association, DAV Commanders Club and the Kentucky Colonels. He was the first disabled member of the Louisville Optimist Club. Mike was a tireless advocate for the disabled. In 2002 he received the "Breaking Barriers" Award from the Metro Disability Coalition. He served on the Kentucky Council on Developmental Disabilities and the Kentucky Advisory Council on Libraries. He supported Kentucky Council of the Blind, Mayor's ADA Roundtable, Louisville Metro Arc, White Cane Day, Ms. Wheelchair Kentucky, United 876K Coalition, Kentucky Office for the Blind and ADA rallies. He regularly attended TARC and KIPDA meetings. Mike was a familiar face around Churchill Downs because of family connections to the horse industry. He was a member of Sister Cities of Louisville, KY World Affairs Council and Louisville Coalition of Neighborhoods. Mike was preceded in death by his father, William M. Lyons; and his mother, Pauline Glasscock Lyons Kostick. He is survived by a sister, Janice E. Davenport, of Crystal River, FL; nephews, Mark S. Sellers and John M. Sellers, of FL; and other relatives. Memorial service; 10 a.m. Monday, February 9, 2009, Arch L. Heady Funeral Home, 2428 Frankfort Ave. Visitation: 9-10 a.m. before service. Burial: noon, Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Central, Radcliff, KY. Memorial gifts in the name of Mike Lyons may be made to the Kentucky Colonel's Good Works Program or Blinded Veterans Association at the VA Hospital.