Charles WILLIAMS

WILLIAMS, Charles Melville (Red) C.M., S.O.M., Ph.D., F.A.I.C 1925 - 2018 With heavy hearts we announce the passing of our father, grandfather and hero, Red Williams on March 26, 2018 at Veterans' Village, Sherbrooke Community Centre, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Dad was born in Regina on March 18, 1925; he was the only child of Percy and Lottie, (née Macdonald), who were farming near Richardson, SK at that time. Percy had come from Ontario on one of the "grain trains" looking for work and Lottie, from Prince Edward Island to teach school. The family moved to Shamrock, SK. where Dad, then known as Chad, started school. Over the years they worked and farmed near Lethbridge and Calgary, AB. Dad often said how fortunate he was to have had such kind and gentle parents. Dad enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy in February 1942 while living in Calgary. He took his basic training in Ottawa and was initially drafted to Dartmouth, NS before sailing overseas to join the HMCS Sioux, his home for the duration of the war. The Sioux sailed in the Atlantic and in Arctic convoys to Murmansk, a northern port in Russia. The Sioux was the first Canadian Navy Ship present on D-Day. After returning to Canada in 1945, Dad, now nicknamed Red, resumed his education, studying at the University of British Columbia and Oregon State University. In 1954, with his Ph.D. in hand, Dad came to the University of Saskatchewan where he began a career that lasted 60 years. Dad seemed to have a limitless supply of energy, maintaining a workload throughout his life that would exhaust two ordinary mortals. He travelled the highways and back roads of Saskatchewan as well as around the world. Dad was incredibly generous of his time and expertise and was a key member of the Liberal Party of Canada, worked for the United Nations, and sat on the Boards of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, and Sherbrooke Community Centre, among others - all this while teaching at the University, and recording a daily radio spot, "Food for Thought". Dad never really retired. He kept his pace up throughout his seventies and eighties, serving as Professor Emeritus at the University of Saskatchewan and keeping an office in the College of Agriculture until the age of 89. A passionate news hound, he maintained a keen interest in science and current events, devouring two daily newspapers and professional periodicals right to the end. He received the Order of Canada in 1978 and the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2002. In 2016, Dad was knighted for his service to France on D-Day and became a Knight of the National Order of the Legion of Honour. He will be lovingly remembered by his three children, Al Williams (JoAnn Organ) of Mount Pearl, NL, Catherine Williams/Greer of Saskatoon, SK, Elaine Wass (Alan) of Vancouver, BC and by his grandchildren, Olivia Cooper (d.1977), Rebecca Wass, Alison Wass, and John Greer. The family would like to thank Dr. Paul Taillon for his extraordinary care, and the amazing team at Co-op Stonebridge Pharmacy as well as the nurses, CCA's and staff of Veterans' Village, Sherbrooke Community Centre for their care and compassion. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Sherbrooke Community Foundation, 401 Acadia Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7H 2E7, or The Kidney Foundation of Canada, Saskatchewan Branch, 2217 Hanselman Ct, Saskatoon, SK S7L 6A8 or a charity of your choice. A Celebration of Life will take place at a later date.