After overcoming a partial amputation, fighting three separate kinds of cancer, and dealing with Parkinson's disease, Gary Williams is finally at peace with no more pain. Gar (rhymes with care, not car) passed away in his home the afternoon of Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017, with family close by, while listening to his favorite music.
Gary was born to Edgar Milo "Eddy" and Betty Mae "Betts" Williams on Dec. 26, 1951, in Moscow. With his brother, Michael Edgar, the family lived in Clarkston, the Tri-Cities and Port Angeles, Wash. After his parents divorced, Betts and the boys moved back to her home town of Kellogg, Idaho, where Gar graduated from high school in 1970. It was during this time in Kellogg that Gar discovered his true love and started playing drums. Following in his grandfather's and his father's footsteps, Gar worked toward a degree in music education at both Boise State University and the University of Idaho, but ear training proved to be his nemesis.
Gar worked for the Bunker Hill Mine in Kellogg for several years. Gar married Christine Kae DeLong in 1973, and they went on to have two beautiful children, Matthew Ryan and Ambrosia Karol. They moved to Lewiston and Gar, or Willy as he was affectionately known, started working at Potlatch Corp. in 1977. The first marriage ended in divorce in 1988.
Gar was active in church and Lewiston Civic Theatre, mainly playing his drums. He played many dance jobs in a small jazz combo with his dad, Eddy. Gar also played in the Lewis-Clark State College Jazz Band and the Community Concert Band. He was a great lover of dogs, especially our boxer, Sophie, and his granddogs, Bogey and Reizend.
Gar met Ann Marie Baumgartner shortly after she started working at Potlatch in 1993. Annie quickly succumbed to Gar's clever sense of humor. Given their mutual interest in music and the many matchmakers at the mill, they were inevitably and happily married in 1997. In 1998, Willy retired from Potlatch after not regaining enough leg strength back after his first bout with cancer. He spent the rest of his time puttering in his wood shop and taking care of those around him, surrounding them with love and laughter.
Gary Williams was preceded in death by his parents Eddy and Betts Williams. He is survived by his big brother Mike and his wife Vargie of Marion, Mont.; his loving wife Annie, soon to be of Genesee; and his wonderful children, Ambrosia of Denver, and Matthew, along with his wife Wendy, of Rathdrum, Idaho, with their first child, Charlotte Mae, arriving in November.
Those of you who worked with him knew of Willy's propensity for labeling things along with his creative thinking, so at our house we had a container labeled not sugar, but suGAR, and we used hambuGAR to make GAR-lash, not goulash. As Gar was home on hospice and I was trying desperately to let him know that he could stop the pain and stop fighting, I told Gar that I did have a couple of guardian angels, but I really needed a GARdian angel. And finally, Gar has taken his spot in heaven, and is surely giving those angels a new beat to dance to. We have been blessed to know and love him while he was with us.
The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home. Interment will take place at 3 p.m. that same day at the Genesee Catholic Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make memorials to the Eddy Williams Scholarship at L.I.F.E., 3317 12th St., Lewiston, ID 83501.
Service Information
- Date & Time
- Monday, August 21, 11:00 AM
- Location
-
Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home
920-21st Avenue
Lewiston, Idaho 83501
Get Directions - Additional Details
- Burial will take place at 3:00 p.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery in Genesee.
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