David Freeman Williams

Dave passed away at his Ashland, Oregon home on Sunday, March 9th, 2008, following a courageous battle with cancer. He was 71.

Dave was born in Alexandria, Virgina, to Clarence "Chet" and Sylvia Williams on August 4th, 1936. While investigating the notorious D'Autremont train robbery of 1923 for the US Postal Inspector's Office, Chet became familiar with the Rogue River Valley and moved the family here in 1948. Dave graduated from Ashland High School in 1954, and with his brother Bob, became a familiar fixture around Ashland, whether speeding in his 1956 red and white Buick Special hard top or taking off from a dirt field (which eventually became a more respectable Ashland Municipal Airport) in the Taylorcraft airplane he bought with 3 other friends.

Dave received a full scholarship to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute out of high school to study electrical engineering, but ultimately earned a degree in economics from the University of Oregon. During Summers working in Crater Lake National Park, Dave managed the gas station owned by Standard Oil (now Chevron), the company from which he would eventually retire 35 years later. His career at Chevron illustrated the stereotypic American success story, beginning with a summer job pumping gas and culminating with an executive position at corporate headquarters. At Crater Lake, he met his wife Janet in 1960 and they married on October 20, 1962. They remained devoted to each other until Janet also died of cancer in 2004.

Dave and Janet raised their 3 children in the San Francisco Bay Area after Dave began working at Chevron headquarters. After moving back to Ashland in 1995 for retirement, Dave served the community in a wide variety of capacities ranging from volunteer police officer to the city budget committee. Dave was also a member of the Ashland Lions, the Siskiyou Singers, the Harmonizers, the volunteer watershed patrol, and a variety of other activities.

When Dave retired at age 53, he and Janet had camped and hiked nearly every major national park in the American West, so they decided to set their sights on the rest of the world. Over the next decade with friends or on their own they visited China, Russia, Scandinavia, Europe, Turkey, Greece, New Zealand, Australia, and Panama. Many places, like New Zealand and Australia, captured parts of their hearts, and they visited those places several times.

Although he did not believe in the power of prayer, Dave gave generously to the Ashland First United Methodist Church because he believed in community and the church's commitment to positive change in Ashland. He was active in the church choir, several social groups, actively participated in the multi-year effort to rebuild and expand the 1876 church, and served on the church's Finance and Building committees.

In addition to his commitment to the Ashland community and his love of the outdoors, Dave will perhaps be most remembered for his extraordinary musical abilities including an uncanny ability to transpose complex piano pieces to any key as he played. Whether playing the organ in church, Gershwin at a party, Rachmaninoff on his baby grand, or a John Denver tune around the campfire on his guitar, Dave was a natural, gifted musician with an encyclopedic repertoire of music.

Contemplating what to do after retirement, Dave toyed with the idea of getting a masters degree from UC Berkeley in music performance. After arriving for the program's audition on campus, Dave practiced a few tunes in a private practice room to get warmed up. When the professor walked in smiling, Dave nervously asked, "What kinds of things would you like me to play for the audition?" The professor, who had been listening outside the practice room door said simply, "You're already in." Although he decided not to pursue the degree so that he and Janet could move back to Ashland, he continued to find great solace and personal peace while playing the piano throughout the rest of his life.

When cancer prevented his fingers from playing at the level to which he was accustomed, Dave refused to play the piano at first, unable to listen to his own disabled performances. But when a fellow musician and osteopathic doctor convinced him that playing the piano could help his physical therapy, Dave continued playing as long as he could get to the piano, even playing with just a few fingers. With his body failing, Dave could still tap out a few sweet notes and make his family smile.

Dave is survived by his brother Bob, sons John and James Williams, daughter Kathryn Williams, grandsons Jackson, Henry, and Zachary Williams, and granddaughter Jenna Williams...all of whom live in Ashland.

Dave requested no memorial, however family and friends will hold a private "Going Away" party on March 21. In lieu of flowers, those who wish to do so may contribute to the Dave and Janet Williams Scholarship at Southern Oregon University (SOU), a full, endowed scholarship for music or theater students established in 2004. Checks may be made payable to the Southern Oregon University Foundation, at SOU Foundation Office, 1250 Siskiyou Blvd, Ashland OR 97520, with a notation on the check indicating the scholarship's name.