Carroll Denon Williams

Carroll Denon Williams (1916-2018)

His childhood:

He was born on April 19, 1916 at home in an old white lumber house, 244 North 5th West Provo, UT.

old white lumber house, 244 North 5th West Provo, UT.

He lived all of his growing up years at 269 North, 4th West, Provo until he went on his mission.
He remembers helping his mother move all of their belongings from the old 5th West house to the new 4th West house-one block away- in a little red wagon.

269 North 4th West, Provo house

His earliest memory is when he walked too close to an ironing board and the hot iron fell on his head.- This memory was burned into his mind.

Shown here at age three, with a big satin bow under his chin, blue-green eyes and a mass of white hair.

about 1916, "cotton top"

He earned the nickname "Cotton-Top". Later everyone called him "BUZZY" because he his older brother Berlin couldn't say brother.

A. Berlin and Carroll D. Williams
(their initials are A. B. and C. D.)

Berlin, Ila, Carroll

His brother Berlin teased Carroll mercilessly about anything and everything until one day, Carroll became so angry that he chased Berlin with a hoe, and his brother scampered away. "When we were young children, we played independently and had our own friends. However when Berlin became ill, at about age 18 we became intimate and very close companions until his early and tragic passing at age 21."

A. Berlyn Williams obituary. The Salt Lake Tribune, 24 Dec 1935, Tue, Page 10

One of his best memories is his mother's delicious home cooking. He remembers especially the Thanksgiving dinners where he and Berlin gorged themselves and afterwards had to lay down for hours while their food digested.

Ila L C Hawks Williams

He remembers his dad always bringing home old cars to repair for other people. One particular time an old crank model started to roll towards him. His dad jumped on the car and it finally crashed into the garage.

Fred and Illa (Hawks) Williams

Golden years, about 1970 Meme and Bamp Williams

Carroll recalls, "My brother Berlin and I were introduced to the best of fishing for 4 or 5 years by Grandpa Joshua Hawks in Strawberry Reservoir, south east of Heber, Utah. We would come home with big strings of large 4-6 pound rainbow trout."

"At age 3, my Grandpa Eli Williams brought us 2 Spitz puppies to play with.

They unfortunately both died and I loved them."

"When I was in 4th grade, my grandpa Charles Eli Williams gave me a beautiful black and brown Belgian shepherd puppy that became the happiness for the rest of my growing up days. We named him Barney and he and I became the greatest cat destroyers until there were none for miles around. I'd say "Siccum" and he would go crazy after the cats.

He had a deep love for man's best friend, including his favorite, Barney.

I called him Cat Killer. In the back of our house on 4th West in Provo, UT, was a big barn full of cats. I would hoist Barney into the hay loft and turn him loose. The agile cats would scramble to the top of the loft and jump to the bottom of the barn floor landing on their feet, managing to get away. Dad brought home a harness to hitch Barney to my wagon, but I could never get him to run faster than a trot-except when he would see a cat. Then all Hades would break loose for a few seconds, because I would always land in some ditch with a broken harness or wagon. After dozens of repairs, I finally conceived the idea of just holding onto big Barney's tail and urging him on by yelling "Siccum" which meant cats or dogs (we got in our share of dog fights too). That dog would whiz me anywhere I wanted to go, including up-town errands for my mother. I learned to guide him by pulling to one side or the other and made fairly good turns unless we were traveling too fast, which was often, and I would have to let go and slow down by dragging my shoes on the pavement."

Bamp and his 2 boys would go pheasant and rabbit hunting. Barney would catch as many as they were able to shoot with his tremendous speed, and for strength they would go over to the Provo River and throw in the biggest logs they could find. Barney would make a running leap and haul those logs out of the river. As Carroll went to college, he had to put his attention to studying and other things. Poor Barney was left pretty much to himself and got to wandering away. Eventually he came home poisoned with strychnine and died- a very sad situation for Carroll.

The Music Man

Carroll began studying the piano when he was approximately 10 years old and was made to practice 2-3 hours a day. As he practiced his piano, he faced the front room window where he could look out and see all the other neighborhood children outside playing, which was challenging for a young boy of his age. Of this time, he remembers, "I washed the keys of the piano with my tears.” He hated practicing until he was a Senior in High School and realized he was really good at it. He began playing in a dance band with his brother, Berlin and played for choruses, other groups and of course at church. He appreciated the fact that his talent served him very well.

As he began to have children of his own, they remember going to sleep often to their dad practicing the great classics on an old cheap upright piano; which he made sound glorious.

The real triumph for Carroll came later in life when he began to enjoy playing his piano and sharing his gift with audiences. He learned that his talent could touch lives and inspire others, and he still performs and practices at age 94.

For many years, Carroll would usually play the organ in his church meetings. On one occasion when he was about 90 years old, as he played the postlude, he began playing "Happy Birthday" song for his sweetheart, Lois, to celebrate her birthday. She of course loved it.

Another one of Carroll's passions is genealogy. His mother also loved to study her ancestry and Carroll seems to have followed suit. At the age of 24, after returning home from his LDS mission to Germany, Carroll was bitten by the "genealogy bug" and since has devoted many years to genealogical research. He has been guided by his passion to seek out his ancestors and a love of history. Carroll relates why genealogy is so important to him, “I had a lot of inspiration from relatives to work on genealogy: Ella Gamber, Illa LC Hawks, Florence Williams to name a few. I extracted thousands of names for temple ordinances from Spanish records located in city and church archives from the 1400’s. Also I could see by the names the Chinese influence was present especially in one syllable names. I did this work with Louis Stradling in Mesa at the stake center for approximately 3 years. In later years, I used many names and work from Ella, Illa and Florence. I did work on our own family histories and researched and submitted all names for temple ordinances. For 40 or 50 years I kept working on genealogical lines: Hawks, Patten, Williams, Keele families. I have researched and submitted 34,000 names to Salt Lake Family History Center. 98% of the family names had already been submitted and temple ordinances completed. In my research, I discovered that 10 families were direct ancestors of Williams and Keele that survived the Mayflower landing.”

Carroll loves to tinker and fix things and has all his life. This started early in his life shown here in this story. At about age 17 in 1932 he was living at 269 N. 4th W in Provo, UT. Carroll recalls, "In order to have money to spend, I would pick fruit. I was picking cherries on the Provo Bench (now called Orem), no matter how hard I tried I couldn't pick them very fast. While I was up in an old cherry tree, I spied an old car. Being the son of a mechanic, I knew no parts were missing. So for curiosity sake, I asked the owner what he would do with it. He would sell it to me for $10. It was a Chevrolet 1923 touring car model, four door canvas top. The hard part was to convince my parents that I might have it to work on. No other parents let their teenager do this. I don't remember how I got it home, but we must have towed it with flat tires as 23 inch rim tires were no longer available. My dad and I took off the oil pan and pulled the pistons out and water had gotten in leaving everything rusted. We had to grind the valves and install new piston rings. There were no batteries because you had to use the crank to start it and advance the car to get a spark. The next big job was to find tires as there were none available. We noticed the spokes could be shaved off to make them fit a 21 inch rim. We finally were able to get money to buy tires. The canvas top was so rotted away, we took it off and it was a really cool touring car. My friends and I talked our parents into letting us go to Yellowstone Park."

MISSIONARY

Elder Williams, ca 1937

In 1937, twenty-one-year old Elder Carroll D. Williams served an honorable mission in East Germany. He stayed predominately in the cities of Magdeburg, Berlin, Tilsit, and Danzig. After serving 23 months, World War II broke out, and he was sent back home to America. At that time, Hitler and his armies had already invaded Austria and Czechoslovakia and were preparing to invade Poland.

The Daily Herald (Provo, Utah)27 Jun 1937, Sun, Page 8

Elder Williams , Germany ca 1938

Three months before his 2 year release, the L.D.S. mission under President Alfred C. Rees secretly evacuated 200 plus missionaries in a freighter ship in the dead of night through the Baltic Sea. It was during a cold winter night that they were shipped to Denmark and eventually back to the United States.

In 1937 Carroll served his first mission to East Germany at the time of Nazi rule. Germans under Hitler’s regime were so happy because they had food, jobs and promises of great glory. They had not enjoyed these commodities since World War I where they experienced 40 years of severe economic depression.

Carroll recalls a close call while on his mission, "I was told to deliver certain church papers and had developed a plan to go to Danzig, still in free Germany. While riding a bus in the winter (without a heater it was so cold!) I wrapped newspaper around my chest under my overcoat to keep warm. The newspapers must have made me look too bulky and suspicious and for whatever reasons, they thought I was a spy. One SS Guard officer in uniform noticed me and said, “You come with me.” A group of officers told me to take off my clothes and they began searching the lining of my clothes. I complied fully and took off my overcoat and suit coat while they checked my passport and questioned me about my business. I said, “Ich bin ein missionar der Jesu Christi der heilgen tagen.” (I am a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints) I was let go immediately, but I was never so terrified in my life."

The Daily Herald, Provo, Utah, 22 Oct 1939, Sun,  Page 5

A memorable event occurred when a German woman gave Elder Williams some hundred year-old books of music by the great masters like Chopin and Bach. He still uses these books as he plays his grand piano well into his nineties.

Carroll BYU graduate

Brigham Young University graduate, June 1941

Carroll graduated from Brigham Young University in June 1941 at the age of 25. He majored in music with a minor in German. He entered BYU at the age of 19 and completed his first 3 years before serving his mission and then finished his Senior year after returning home. When asked how he felt about his graduation, he replied, "At last I am finished! I was glad to be out of there."
His parents paid for his four year education. His father worked at Dixon-Taylor-Russell furniture store as the mechanic on all their fleet of moving trucks to pay for his degree.
While attending BYU, Carroll met a highly skilled violinist named Max Butler, and they formed a duo which performed all over the Provo valley.
He could only practice 1-2 hours a day because he had to walk to and from school everyday for 4 years. Carroll's father would fix cars to trade for his piano lessons.
His instructors included Mr. Fisrow, and his favorite professor at BYU was John Halliday who was a jovial and personal man that taught him Solfeggio- which is learning to sing knowing the steps in the scale by recognizing the tone. Other men that have influenced him are Samuel Williams, one of his first piano teachers and a German man name Henry Steinickert. Lastly, his BYU Professor, the Dean of Fine Arts, Gerrit de Jong taught him organ and piano. He was also influenced by J. J. Keeler who was a renowned organist, and Carroll was able to observe him while turning his music pages. A few professors at BYU remarked and told Max Butler that Carroll had a most unusual talent and a great potential to make it in the professional world as a classical pianist.
He began training to be a classical pianist in High School and BYU, however he changed his course to teaching because he felt he would rather take a licking than perform because he was so hard on himself if mistakes were made.

Engagement and Marriage:

The Salt Lake Tribune (Salt Lake City, Utah)12 Jan 1941, Sun Page 51

(there are no known photos of these events)
How Carroll and Lois met, her version: "One Saturday night, our gang of girls was going to our old favorite dance hall, Utahana. We were sitting in the car checking out who was coming and going, and trying to decide if we wanted to go in or find some other entertainment, when this nice looking fellow strolled up to our car and started talking. I was definitely interested. He was so handsome. So I said, "Let's go in and dance." His reply was, "No, I'm not much of a dancer." Immediately I was turned off and went on into the dance without looking back. He stayed on and talked to Bell and he ended up taking her home.
A couple of nights later, he showed up at our door step wanting a date with Bell who was not home. I piped up from the kitchen, "Tell him her little sister is here." But my mother remarked that I was too young for him.
Then it was Valentine's night, February 1940, and he drove up to our house to give us a ride for mutual. Newly fallen snow made everything look like a fairyland, and it was exciting as he opened the car door to let us in. I had to do some fast maneuvering to make sure that I got to sit by him, so I quickly hopped in first, avoiding the look on Bell's face. It seemed not to matter that he couldn't dance. This young man from BYU just recently returned from a German Mission and played the piano so beautifully. I thought he had all the qualities that I would ever want in a husband. I thought if this young man ever asks me to marry him, I'll say, “Yes, I'll marry you.”
From then on Carroll and I began our courtship which lasted a whole year. If I waited long enough, Carroll would eventually call and ask for a date, or be very upset if I had accepted another offer. Near Christmas time, we went to his home and found his mother wearing my future engagement ring. By the way, I really didn't have a clue to his intentions, another one of his assumptions (Lois says Carroll had to chase his mother around to get the ring back). He took the
diamond ring, which he had bought from his pawned German binoculars, off his mother's finger and flashed it in the air. Again I was quick and snatched it before he changed his mind (Grandpa's version is he never actually asked the question," Will you marry me?"). Nevertheless, this was his proposal and they were married in the Salt Lake Temple January 6, 1941."

Lois recalls that they did not have a wedding reception because they were very poor, but also the day they were married, January 6, 1941, Fred, Illa and Carroll picked up Lois at 6:00am and they traveled from Provo to the Salt Lake Temple and were there all day. Lois says, "When we came out of the temple, it was dark and we were so tired that we just went home to Fred and Illa's home where Illa tucked us into bed." They did throw her a wedding shower at Aunt Dine Ekins home near BYU campus. One of her treasured gifts was from her parents, a Singer sewing machine. The sewing machine began a legacy of sewing shirts, dresses, pinafores and petticoats for the family. They also did not have a traditional honeymoon, but rather they identify this one night on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon as their belated honeymoon about 6 months later. They spent the night on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in sleeping bags and watched the magnificent sun rise.
They lived with his parents for 6 months in Provo, UT and he went to work at Geneva Steel as a welder-with excellent pay. (OMIT ALL) Several offers to teach came in and he accepted the one for $1700 a year in St. David, Arizona. Packed up their first car-a Desoto- and started for a new life and a belated honeymoon.
Now all these years later, they seem to have grown more and more in love. Lois says," I have been so blessed to have Carroll here with me all these years. He is the love of my life." Carroll says, "Boy, every time I look at her I think, no wonder I went chasing after her!”

St. David, AZ

Williams family connection to St. David, Arizona with a brief early history: St. David was established as a result of the Mormon Battalion having earlier passed through the San Pedro River valley in 1846. One of the founders of St. David, Philemon C. Merrill, was a member of the battalion. Abraham Hunsaker, Carroll's great grandfather, was a Sergeant in this battalion. The Mormon settlers of 1877 were part of a group that originally was to settle Lehi, Arizona but stayed there instead. The town was named after David Wyman Patten, an early Mormon apostle killed in 1838 in Missouri. David Wyman Patten is a brother to Lois's Great Great Grandfather, Dr. John Patten. As a tight-knit Mormon community, the concentration of Latter-day Saints was high enough in St. David that a stake was created there in 1941, 5 years prior to one being established in Mesa, even though a temple had been built in Mesa in 1927.
Even though he had an excellent paying job as a welder, he wanted to use his talent and training in music in the teaching profession. Soon Santaquin Utah School district offered Carroll a job for $800 a year as a music teacher. However, an Arizona principal, AJ Kartchner, came from St. David, Arizona recruiting new talented teachers at BYU to teach high school and grade school music and English for the amazing amount of $1700 a year. Needless to say they accepted the best offer, bought their first car-a Desoto, packed up everything needed for housekeeping, kissed all their loved ones farewell and started for a new adventure.
Lois recalls of this time, "We contemplated. Life was good; I had been given goodly parents and a wonderful family, where hard work, love, discipline and an abiding faith in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ was ever present. Now with my eternal companion and gentle friend we were headed on our way to make our future home in St. David, AZ."
When they arrived in the poor farming community of St. David, they realized what a bleak, barren and desolate place it really was, so far from home and the support of family. Lois recalls, "We put our heads together and cried and wondered what have we done?"
Nevertheless, they persevered and excelled during their one year stay in the glorious Arizona sunshine. It was in St. David they made life-long friends with Gove and Maggie Allen. Lois tended their children during the day.
Carroll's musical groups at school earned excellent ratings at Tucson regional competitions and was very popular with his students. The teenagers loved hanging out at their home because they had a phonograph to play music.

It was during this time that their little family grew when Phillip Ray was born September 1942.

ARMY

The Daily Herald, Provo, Utah , 03 Jan 1943, Sun , Page 9

Srgt  C D Williams about 1941

World War II had already begun and on December 7, 1941 the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and America was plunged into war. President Roosevelt began drafting all eligible men. Carroll was among those drafted on December 16, 1942 and by January 1943, he found himself leaving for boot camp training in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Sgt Williams, Lois holding baby JoAnna, about 1944. Georgia.

Carroll was tested, trained and assigned to the Signal Corps attached to the Air Force. They were trained to install high frequency equipment designed to guide and land airplanes (this was before radar). He eventually earned the rank of Sergeant.
Lois was left under the care of Carroll's parents and remained behind trying to survive with a new baby and face the loneliness of Carroll's absence.

To compensate, they corresponded daily.
As soon as boot camp ended, Carroll sent for Lois to join him in Redbank, New Jersey, Army Base. As this was no life for a baby, little Phil was left with Grandma Williams.
Carroll was stationed for six months abroad in New Guinea. However, when they arrived there, the job had already been finished. So they spent their time in tropical, sweltering climate waiting for their release.

During his tour in New Guinea, Lois had gone home alone with Phil to Provo, this time in her own apartment; located over the Eve's store. Lois retells this story, "Just prior to JoAnna's birth, Carroll's mother, Illa, called Carroll and told him that he should try to arrange to come home for his baby's birth. Thereafter the guys in his unit called him The Arranger." In November 1944, JoAnna was born at Utah Valley Hospital. Carroll returned a little while later and they bought a car to transport the little family to his next assignment, Macon, Georgia.

After the war was over, Carroll's team was being sent to India. He left Lois and their 2 children in North Carolina and shipped out to New York. While there, he read Thomas Mann's "Joseph the Provider". It was over this book that he became hospitalized. It was raining so hard and he was so engrossed with this book that he had skipped a few meals and since it was still raining, he ran as hard as he could and passed out in the chow line. When he came to, he had a splitting head ache and found himself in the hospital.

Carroll, Philip and Lois about 1943

Meanwhile the government began releasing men to go back into civilian life based on a points system. The points system included years of service, spouse, number of children, etc. So the day before his team was to embark on the ship to India, the points were lowered making it possible for Carroll to go home. He returned immediately to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to be honorably discharged November 1, 1945. Carroll and Lois wanted to do some sight seeing, but instead they loaded up their Buick and headed straight for home. Lois recalls, "Provo, Utah never looked so good!"

On the Road Again. Williams Rides Provo, UT 1946-1947

After the war they returned home to Provo, Utah purchased a home, and bought the amusement rides from Monte Young. which they kept for several years.(omit) The Williams Rides were kept for several years and became such hard work! Bamp was an artist at refurbishing the beautiful horses on the carousel as well as a top notch mechanic. However, it was impossible to hire good labor to work the rides and they always seemed to be having accidents with the moving equipment. On one occasion, due to improper installation of the cables, one of the patrons had a fatal accident. Carroll remembers, "It took a fleet of trucks to move all the equipment and one time, a driver was going up a big hill traveling too fast when the transmission exploded. It took out the brakes and he could barely steer the wheel, so on his way down the mountain he was traveling at speeds of 80-90 miles per hour yelling at people to get out of the way. Miraculously he made it down the hill without an accident. These incidents and the fact that working on Sundays was not to their liking, they decided to sell after two summers in the amusement ride business.

Williams Rides 1946-1947

Phil remembers, "Dad and Grandpa owned and operated a carnival called Williams Rides with all the trimmings; Ferris- wheel, merry go 'round, loop-o-plane (hammer), octopus, swings and kiddie rides. I remember thinking I was hot stuff riding all the rides and sitting in the ticket booth with mom and grandma. I probably got into a lot of trouble then, but can't remember any big stuff. I remember riding from one town to another to set up the show with dad and Bamp. As I learned later, they thought it was not the place to raise kids, so the Williams Rides were sold."
JoAnna remembers, "I was sitting on mother's lap in a ticket booth when I looked up and saw a carousel horse that had come loose off the platform coming towards us. Mother picked up the booth and JoAnna in the other arm and moved us out of harm’s way."

Williams Rides 1946-1947

This ended their time in Provo, Utah as a permanent home and would from this time forward made their home in Arizona far away from family support.

Ft Thomas and Mesa, AZ Carroll teaching career

Carroll was a teacher for thirty years primarily in the Mesa Valley teaching music and English. He taught his piano classes with multiple students and multiple pianos using his time wisely.

Because he had perfect pitch and skilled piano techniques, he was able to help his students succeed. With his ability to hear the tones and pitches perfectly, he was also a very skilled piano tuner and tuned pianos for years and years, even after he retired.

He often gave private lessons in a portable piano van that held 8-10 electronic keyboards which he took to his student's neighborhoods. Once again, this was a unique and innovative idea that enabled him to teach multiple students all at once. He officially retired from education in 1962.

KIDS, KIDS and more KIDS

And so it begins, decades of raising children, activities, dating and everything in between. JoAnna remembers growing up in Mesa, "In the hot summers, we ran to Rendezvous Park, probably about one mile plus away, to the only public swimming pool available. On the way we would race from grass to grass patches as fast as our little legs would take us; feet burning and scorched from the hot pavement. Where were our shoes? I remember being stung numerous times by bees on our flowering grass, and being hopelessly caught in sticker patches barefoot; again where were our shoes?
I also have fond memories of skating on the sidewalks in our neighborhood using skates that required keys to tighten them up, learning to ride bicycles and falling down and gouging our legs up and knocking out teeth. Water fights were the best mode of cooling down along with water-sliding on the front porch for hours. Because we didn't have TV, we created our own games such as playing kick ball over the house way late until midnight many summer nights."

“ Mom would bake whole wheat bread and beans for many meals. I remember Mother could never get the groceries from the car into the house without the hungry kids attacking the grocery bags. How did mom and dad feed 10 enormous appetites on school teacher salary?”

Home Sweet Home, life on 7th Avenue

After their marriage, Carroll and Lois moved 800 miles away from their families and all they had ever known to begin their new life together. Soon after, they were blessed with children and as one can only imagine how difficult and lonely it would be to raise 10 children without family support. They were pioneers of sorts, not unlike Carroll's grandparents, Maggie and Joshua Hawks among the first settlers of Mesa, Arizona.
Once or twice a year, Carroll faithfully planned a trip from Mesa, AZ to Provo, UT to visit grandparents. Their children recall this not being thought of fondly and remember long 16 hours in a hot and cramped vehicle (9-10 people in a two seat car). But because of their loyalty and love for their family, Carroll & Lois made the journey yearly.
227 E. 7th Avenue, Mesa, AZ. This is the place where the Williams children called home for many years. Soon, they saw the need for more space in order to fit twelve people in this three bedroom, one bath home. Sleeping quarters were always tight. All the boys slept in one room and the girls slept in another leaving one more room for Carroll and Lois. So in 1954, Carroll took on the job of building an addition where the carport once stood. It included another big room, a full bathroom and the laundry room to house their always growing family.
Eventually, Bamp and Meme came to live with the Williams family in their declining years. Even though it was already over-crowded and cramped, this didn't deter Carroll and Lois from always caring for and looking after their loved ones.
In 1972 a big event happened in the Williams family. A beautiful swimming pool was installed which was unusual for a family living on a school teacher’s salary. Back then, very few families in their neighborhood had one, and it proved to be very useful and popular with the neighborhood children, the Williams children, and all their friends. There were many pool parties and barbecues out on the back porch, and the built-in BBQ that they installed and(delete and) proved to be a wise investment for family and friends. Lois always had her flowers growing and her lovely plants that offered sweet aromas and wonderful vibrant colors for everyone to enjoy. It truly was a little Garden of Eden.
Even in later years when the grandchildren came along, "the whole backyard" provided the highlight of the trip and was enjoyed for many years. Lois and Carroll scarified in many ways to keep the pool up and running for all the grandkids to enjoy.

Couple Missionaries: A little piece of heaven, Germany 1989-1990

Couple Missionaries Frankfurt, Germany 1989-1990

Situated several miles north of Frankfurt in the historic city of Friedrichsdorf, the Frankfurt Germany Temple stands on elevated land near a major highway where drivers can glimpse its graceful detached spire. Ancillary buildings are on site including a patron housing facility for long-distance travelers. The immaculate grounds, open to the public, are beautified with colorful shrubs and flowers.
When asked where is her favorite place on the planet? Lois replied, "The Frankfurt Temple because it is a little piece of heaven on earth."

They served a temple mission to Frankfurt, Germany and made their home in a little village just outside Frankfurt. Of this time, Carroll relates, “It was very enjoyable having the love of my life as my companion. We walked back and forth from our apartment to temple sessions for about 4 months. Then we decided to do some sightseeing and so we bought a car, a Peugeot with a sunroof. We kept our money for the car in the refrigerator, so we called it our “cold cash”. Instantly we became popular because we had wheels and soon other couples joined us on our tourist trips. We went to Barcelona, Spain and we saw Columbus’ Santa Maria replica and statue, and Tassa de Mac “Flower of the Sea”. One thing I noticed was the people have beautiful brown eyes. This was at Christmas time and we attended a midnight mass at a Catholic church.”

Elder Williams, German mission, about 1989

Eder and Sister Williams, Germany, about 1989

Their first job on their mission was spent extracting names from German records for Temple ordinances. Later, they served in all capacities of the Temple. Lois was called to the nursery to watch all the children and dress them in their whites for sealings. Lois sang with the children "I am a child of God”. One day, 2 older boys about 8 years old ran ahead of Lois and turned off all the lights in the temple. She was embarrassed, but no real harm done. Looking back she can recall the great job she did with them. In her blessing it says, “She will teach the children of Zion.”
One of the highlights of their mission at such a historical and momentous occasion was to witness the Berlin wall tumble down. They had to leave their mission a few months early to attend their son-in-laws funeral, Marty Walling.

Hawaii anniversary:

how cute are their matching tops?

Lois has always loved Hawaii. She says, “I would listen to the Hawaiian music, but never dreamed I would be able to visit the islands.”

Hawaii, 1991

In 1991, it was their 50th wedding anniversary and their children gave them a 50th wedding anniversary party with an Hawaiian theme. Hawaiian food and Hawaiian entertainment punctuated the evening, and as a special surprise, the family gave Carroll and Lois tickets to Hawaii.
Lois and Carroll finally got to live her dream of flying to Hawaii. They rented a car and drove around Oahu and visited the Polynesian Cultural Center really enjoying the live entertainment. Also Carrol and Lois relished a dinner cruise.

Alaska Adventures and the suspenders man:

While visiting Marty and Susette Walling in Alaska, Carroll remembers, "We were north of Dawson Creek in Canada when we first experienced the Aurora Borealis. I remember the sky dancing and felt as if the heavens were engulfing us." Lois adds, "It was like angel wings were sweeping the earth as we watched in awe." Their young grandson Craig Walling who was asleep at the time, jumped up out of a dead sleep and said, 'We are in the center of the coronas!'
Fishing was a frequent activity on their visits to Alaska. Of this time, Carroll remembers, "The first time I went fishing with Marty and Susette was when the Salmon were running to spawn. During the day we went out in the river and waited for a long time…seeing no fish. But by that night, the Salmon came by the thousands. Carroll remembers, "You could snag the salmon with your fishing pole without using bait. It was also my first taste of Salmon and had the most delicious freshly boiled Salmon."

Grandpa’s favorites:

* Being anywhere with His Wife in Nature * Music* Fishing * Grand Piano * Football * Happiness * Traveling * Computers * History & genealogy * Suspenders * * Summertime * Color of peach * Chopin * Ice Cream with fruit * History Books.


Carroll's words of wisdom:
" Look forward. Learn to forgive fast and love more.

cutest couple. Carroll and Lois Williams

legacy of love

Carroll Denon Williams, almost 102 years old, born April 19, 1916 in Provo, UT to Charles Frederick Williams and Illa L.C. Hawks passed away February 28, 2018 Mesa, AZ. Carroll served an honorable LDS German mission 1937-1939. He graduated BYU with a music major and German minor. He married Lois Keele on January 6, 1941 in the Salt Lake Temple. His teaching career began 1941 in St David, AZ afterwards, he was drafted into the US Army in WW II,1942-1945. Upon his return, he resumed his teaching career and taught until 1978. Carroll and Lois served a LDS Temple Mission to Germany 1989-1990. He was an avid genealogist his entire life, researching over 30,000+ names. He is survived by his children: Phillip, JoAnna, Fred, Ron, Susette, Michele, Russell, Scott, Christine, Aimee; 56 grandchildren; 120 plus great grandchildren, and 3 plus great, great grandchildren. A celebration of his life will be held 11am Friday, March 9th LDS Superstitions Springs Chapel, 4640 East Holmes Ave, Mesa, AZ. Family viewing held at 10am. Internment at City of Mesa Cemetery, Mesa, AZ.