Rev. Roy D. Williams' Obituary
Born November 13, 1925, to the late Orlena and Roy D. Williams, Sr., Roy was the oldest of four children: Roy, Gene, Bob and Patty. They moved to Saltillo, TN when Roy Sr. entered the ministry. Growing up, Roy, Jr. lived in Saltillo, TN, Mercer, TN, and Arlington, KY, as well as Benton, KY, where he excelled at basketball at Benton High School. He was graduated in 1943. Having already enlisted in the United States Navy prior to his actual graduation, he was sent to Naval Air Corp Great Lakes Training in the Chicago area, immediately after his cap and gown ceremony. From there he studied at Berea, KY – Naval Air Corp Schooling, Officers Training – then to pre-flight training school, in Georgia. He further studied and trained on N3N Steerman Biplanes, in Murray, KY, and was discharged in 1945, at Millington, TN, where he had his first glimpse of a town he would later come to love. After the Navy, Roy pursued a degree at Lambuth College, in Jackson, TN, aiming for a career in the sports industry. While there, he would often visit his family in Mayfield, KY, where his father was the minister of the First Methodist Church. His sister, Patricia, told Roy that she found the perfect girlfriend for him – Helen Lamkin, who lived just two houses down the street. Roy’s father also thought Helen was perfect for Roy. After meeting at the church on a Sunday night, Roy said, “It was love at first sight.” They dated, and Mr. Lamkin invited Roy to go with them to a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game. Those days, Helen would visit Roy at Lambuth to watch him play basketball and football. On May 29, 1948, Roy and Helen eloped and were married in Corinth, MS. They welcomed their first child, Helen Carol, in November of 1949. Roy was graduated from Lambuth College in the spring of 1950. He immediately went to work for Metropolitan Life Insurance as an agent, in Mayfield, KY. Then, in September of 1951, Roy and Helen welcomed Roy D., III (Dee). After swearing he would never, ever follow in his father’s footsteps, leading to the ministry, Roy heard the call. He began his studies for the ministry at Cumberland Presbyterian Theological Seminary, in 1955, in McKenzie, TN. While Roy studied and worked on his thesis, he also began serving his first appointment through the Methodist Conference as pastor at Maury City Methodist Church, in Maury City, TN. He continued to serve in Maury City after becoming ordained until, in 1960, the Memphis Conference of the Methodist Church assigned him as Associate Minister at Madison Heights Methodist Church in Memphis, TN. In 1963, Roy was asked to start a new church in an “un-churched” area of Frayser, TN. Helen, Carol and Dee were the three founding members of Frayser Heights Methodist Church, which grew from three to almost 900 members by 1968. From there he went to serve at Wesleyan Hills United Methodist Church (1970), First United Methodist Church of Millington, TN (1977), and Trinity United Methodist Church (1986). Retiring from the ministry in 1991, Roy and Helen then returned to Millington, where he continued to give his time and service to The United Way and The United Methodist Neighborhood Centers. Throughout the years, they spent time with their families and they always enjoyed traveling and vacationing together. One of the greatest highlights of Roy’s life was during a trip to London, England. They were touring John Wesley’s Chapel, a church built by the founder of the Methodist movement, and Roy was allowed to stand in the pulpit where John Wesley actually preached. In 2007, Roy and Helen left Millington and moved to Collierville, TN, to be closer to their family. On Tuesday April 14, 2015, in Methodist Hospice, surrounded by family and with love, Rev. Roy D. Williams, Jr. took his last earthly breath, and left to be with God. Anyone that listened to Roy in church, and in life, would know his most important lesson was that of love. His message from the pulpit was always about love. His blessings before meals were always filled with love. Roy’s emphasis in any area of discussion would always focus on the foundation of love. The final moments of his life give testament to the fact that he “Practiced what he preached.” What a wonderful life. “Well done, thy good and faithful servant.”Rev. Roy D. Williams, Jr. is survived by his wife, Helen L. Williams; son, Roy (Dee) Williams, III; daughter, Carol W. Hall (Ernest); brothers, Gene Williams and Bob Williams; sister, Patty Woodmansee; grandchildren, Rachel Baronowski, Ruth McFall, Lauren Quinnell, Jett Williams, and Llana Williams; and great grandchildren, Hunter, Bekah, Austin, Holden, Harper, Nathan, Katelyn, and Jax. The family will receive friends from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, April 16 and the funeral service at 10 a.m. Friday, April 17 all at Memorial Park Funeral Home. The family requests that memorials in his memory be made to Methodist Hospice.Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5668 Poplar Ave. Memphis, TN 38119, “Behind the Stone Wall.”
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