Carl Williams was a very special and beloved husband, father, grandfather, relative, and friend. We mourn his passing. He fought the good fight, finished the course, and now there is laid up for him a crown of life. He is with the Lord, but there is a huge hole for all who are left behind.

I first met Carl in 1978 when the National Council on Family Relations had our Annual Conference in Philadelphia. Carl was working at Drexel University at the time. Dr. Sara Taubin, a professor at Drexel, was on the Local Arrangements Committee and she asked Carl to help us with the audiovisual needs at the NCFR conference. Carl did a masterful job, giving 200% to the task. He made everything run so smoothly. We found out that he had taken vacation time to help us.

At the end of the week we asked him if he would be willing to help us at the next year’s conference, which would be in Boston. Carl enthusiastically said yes, that he would be happy to take vacation and come and help us out. He then came every year after that. In fact, he was in Orlando at the 2011 conference last November helping all that he could, as sick as he was. Every year he drove hundreds and thousands of miles to come to our conference, bringing a jam-packed van loaded with equipment that saved NCFR thousands of dollars in equipment rental from hotels. I can’t think of any equipment that he didn’t have in his stash. He was always looking for ways to save NCFR money in A/V costs. He worked 15 to 18 hours a day, without complaint, being proactive and making so many friends of NCFR members. If a problem arose, we just called Carl, and he’d immediately come to the rescue.

In addition to his vast technical knowledge, Carl endeared himself to all of us. He had a great sense of humor that made the long hours of work enjoyable for everyone. We had lots of laughs and many precious memories. In 2003, at the Vancouver conference, everyone was so impressed with his work, that when Customs was trying to prevent him from coming to Canada to work for us, the Canadian consulate, hotel staff, and others went to bat for us and for Carl to enable him to get through Customs so he could help at our conference. Carl joked that as his wife, Minnie, was praying that they would get through Customs, he was praying, “Let me go back home.” Of course he was joking, because he was so committed to NCFR that he would never let the organization down. I was so grateful that Minnie was able to come along with him to the conferences so that we got to know her, too, and she and Carl could enjoy time together as they drove to and from the sites.

Carl and Minnie both had such a beautiful faith in God and family that just radiated from them. I know that Carl’s love for the work in God’s kingdom was unparalleled. He was willing to help everyone. Through the NCFR conferences, Carl met the Hutchinson family, who own and operate Christian Audio Tapes. They were so impressed with Carl’s work and knowledge that they called him to tape sessions at the Eastern Christian Convention for many years, but if these conventions were at the same time as NCFR, he worked for us, no matter how far away they were from Philadelphia.

To save NCFR money, Carl began bringing his son Matt to the conferences to videotape our sessions. In 2007, when I was going to be retiring full time from NCFR, Carl also decided that he should start mentoring someone to eventually take his place, and he hand-picked Chris Griffin. Chris began coming with Carl then and has come every year since. Neither Carl nor I totally retired from NCFR and we still kept coming to work at the conferences. Carl was a good mentor to Chris, and NCFR is now grateful that Chris will capably continue the work. This just shows more of Carl’s character, as he wanted to do the very best work and he wanted to train others so that when he didn’t come, everything was ready to continue. Carl truly cared for everyone and wanted only the best.

God broke the mold when he made Carl; he was one of a kind. I imagine him up in heaven, troubleshooting all the computer systems up there and making everyone feel special. May all of us left here follow in Carl’s footsteps and give ourselves totally to God’s work so that those behind us will find us faithful. This is the best way that we can remember and honor him. Carl, I will never forget you. Thank you for blessing my life. We look forward to seeing you in heaven.

May God’s love enfold Minnie, the children, and the grandchildren during these difficult days.