With
great sadness we report that PNA board member, Rev. Ronald
Williams, died on Tuesday, February 4, 2003. He suffered
a heart attack while recovering at Daniel Freeman Hospital
from a stroke in December.
A
musical tribute is scheduled for Saturday, February 8, 7pm,
at First AME Santa Monica, located on Michigan Ave at the
corner of 19th Street. Rev. Williams was the pastor for
that church.
Funeral
services will take place Monday, February 10, at 11am at
First AME in Los Angeles, 2270 South Harvard near the intersection
of Western and Adams.
We
extend our deepest sympathies to Ron's wife Dori and their
children. And to the congregation of First AME, we express
condolences and hold hands in solidarity as our community
grieves.
From Don Gray, PNA Chairperson
To
Rev. Williams, in memorial and appreciation
It
was almost as if he knew his time with us would be limited,
the way Rev. Williams plunged right into action in a city
that almost prides itself on contentious politics. And
the slightly arched eyebrows and furrowed brow that he
would sometimes wear when receiving troubling information
did not last too long.
He
saw underpaid workers in this city, and spoke out for
them. He felt firsthand the sting of discrimination, and
stood up against it. He worked for the education of our
youth, knowing that it was the single most necessary step
to improving lives.
As
a resident of the Pico Neighborhood he saw the dehumanizing
effect of drug use, and witnessed the violence of people
against one another, and he regularly took to the streets
to demonstrate to all he met that it didn't have to be
that way.
As
a resident of our neighborhood he saw a fractured community,
battling influences from both outside and within that
threaten to tear it apart. And although it was not politically
popular, he campaigned for the stability and community
that home ownership can bring with it. For most other
people this political risk-taking would be considered
foolhardy. But Rev. Williams was no regular person. He
was a leader. A leader in the old-fashioned way.
He
led not just with words, but by example. It was not necessary
to have the support of a large group, or even a small
group, or, for that matter, any group, for him to take
action. He was a man that looked within, and to the almighty,
for direction. He was not a "consensus builder,"
the likes of which we have so many around this town. He
took action not for personal gain or glory, but for the
betterment of others. His leadership powers came not from
the clerical robes he wore, but by the moral directives
he lived by. And his leadership was most visible not when
he stood behind the pulpit, but as he walked through our
streets.
The
time Rev. Williams was with us was too short. But the
impact he had on our neighborhood will live beyond him,
not just in the programs and politics he espoused, but
by his example. If I can do it, he seemed to say, why
can't you? Indeed, why can't we all?
