Richard D. Williams Sr., 85, of Front Royal, Virginia, went home to his Lord and Savior on Saturday, July 20, 2024 at Winchester Medical Center.
A funeral service will be held on Monday, July 29, 2024 at 11:30 A.M. at Front Royal Baptist Temple with Pastor Carl Menefee officiating. Interment will follow in Panorama Memorial Gardens at Waterlick.
Richard was born September 24, 1938 in Rappahannock County, Virginia, son of the late Garnett D. and Katherine Grim Williams. He was also preceded in death by his wife, Shirley Pritchett Williams; son, Danny Williams; brothers, James Williams and Wayne Williams; sisters, Dorothy A. Glascock and Patty G. Massey; grandson, Justin Williams and Great grandson, Justin Abbate.
He was a loyal and faithful member of the Front Royal Baptist Temple for many dedicated years. Richard had a passion for serving the Lord. He loved spending time with his family, especially grandchildren and great-grandchildren, whom he cherished. He had a desire to fly from an early age. He learned that cardboard wings, no matter how hard he flapped would not allow him to fly, as he fell quickly into a sawdust pile. In 1982, he purchased his first Ultralight Aircraft and became the first person in the area to fly an Ultralight. This was the start of a 41-year passion and nearly 2800 hours of flight time with a few bumps and lumps along the way. Upon retirement from Dupont, there were numerous co-workers, who became friends and flying buddies.
Survivors include his son, Richard (Rick) Williams, Jr. and wife Teresa of Chandlersville, Ohio; daughter-in-law, Patty Potter of Verona, Virginia; brother, Ronnie A. Williams of Front Royal; sister, Barbara K. Dolly of Front Royal; 4 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and Gary Partlow, whom he loved as a son.
Pallbearers will be Kevin Glascock, Chuck Harper, Chris Hutzell, Robert Payne, Jeff VanAnden, Jamie VanAnden, Ryan Rohrbaugh and Jeff Lewis
Honorary pallbearers will be Mark Stallard, Chip Woodard, Kerry Young, Mike Sims, and George Cline.
The family will receive friends on Monday, July 29, 2024 from 10:00 until 11:30 A.M. at the church.
Memorial contributions may be made in Richard’s memory to Front Royal Baptist Temple, 25 West 18th Street, Front Royal, Virginia 22630 or to a charity of one’s choice.
So sad to hear of Richards passing.
We will be keeping you and your beloved family in our prayers.
We will be thinking of you as your Classmates of the Class of 59 gather in September to say our farewells.
God Bless you
Betty Bowman Dameron , Warren County
Class of 59
Sending prayers 🙏 ❤️ to you an family my heart goes out for you ❤️.
Brother Richard will be missed greatly on this side of heaven!!! I’m thankful to have known Richard Williams a wonderful brother in Christ whose example I aspire to follow!!! Good night Richard until I see you in the morning.
John 11:26 KJV — And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
Whenever I think of Richard, I see his smile. He always smiled and made everyone around him smile. He and Shirley lived the most sincere Christian example I have ever known. They never knew how important their example was to me and how deeply they influenced my choices in life. Although they’re celebrating together in the presence of Jesus, a bright light had left us here on earth.
My family and I met Richard and Shirley on our nightly walks around the neighborhood. They both soon “adopted” my 2yo son as their own grandchild and treated him as such. They always had a big smile and hug waiting when we would walk by. Our walks slowly turned into sitting on there porch and visiting. Until we moved away to another town. But we still periodically visited and they sent cards for holidays. My son and I visited Richard after Shirley passed on. For some reason I was just thinking of him today and looked him up to find out about his passing. He was such a kind and generous man. He treated my son as his own grandchild which meant so much to us. He will be missed. God Bless him and his family. He will always hold a special place in my families heart.