Samuel Sykes Williams ’57

Sam saw himself as a simple man. He was gentle, reflective, and quietly grateful for all he had, including friends who were drawn to his thoughtful but palpable appreciation of life.

He wrote of attending Central High School in Charlotte, N.C., where “Knowledge Is Power”; of the “too-distant memory of those glorious times at Princeton,” where he belonged to Ivy Club and sang tenor with the Glee Club; of “basking in memories” over 43 years of his wife and “co-adventurer in life,” Sherry; of their home in Charlotte, where Sam was raised and to which he returned after law school at the University of North Carolina; of time spent with Sherry in their garden; of three children and 11 grandchildren; of his seven dogs over time; of the “truly good” clients he served during a half-century practice of what might be called family law in Charlotte; of singing with Sherry in their Baptist church’s choir; of basketball and tennis and bass fishing; and of taking up running in his 40s, including finishing 10 marathons, including one each in Chicago and Atlanta.

Sam died July 23, 2022, relatively quickly at home, of late-diagnosed pancreatic cancer. “If love could save him,” Sherry said, “he’d still be alive.”