Page 4 — Thursday, May 6, 2021 — The Hastings Banner
Middleville resident Robert Williams, 83,
spent his career working for the Young
Men’s Christian Association and, similarly,
has dedicated much of his personal time to
involvements in service organizations.
As a young man, he decided he wanted a
career working with young people and was
heavily influenced by the late Bob King,
longtime director of the Barry County
YMCA, who advised Williams on how to
achieve his career goals.
“I decided that [because of] the influence
of my teachers and coaches in school, my
Scoutmaster, that I would have a career
working with youth. And I didn’t know any-
one who made a full-time profession of it,
but there was this one guy.... his name was
Bob King,” Williams said. “So, I went over
to see him and he said, ‘Well, there’s a col-
lege that trains people to [work with youth].
It’s called George Williams College.
“I just took that to be the gospel.”
So, Williams got a job at Bradford White
to pay for classes at Grand Rapids Community
College — where he met his wife of 35
years, Barbara Williams, who sat behind him
in a government class — before transferring
to George Williams College in Chicago in
1960.
After graduating, Williams went on to get
a master’s degree in psychology and guid-
ance counseling from Springfield College in
Massachusetts. He married Barbara in 1963
— they would eventually have four children
together — and graduated shortly after in
June of 1964. By then, he’d already started
his career in nonprofits, working at the
Springfield YMCA part-time.
Williams’ first full-time job after college
was working as a program director for the
YMCA of Palo Alto, Calif., where he orga-
nized high school clubs and worked at the
summer camps for four years.
He went on to found a YMCA in
Schaumberg, Ill. — which originally was
called the Twinbrook YMCA and is now the
Campanelli YMCA — and was there for 10
years before becoming president of the
YMCA of Kanawha Valley in Charleston,
W.V.
“It was really a wonderful experience for
me and I learned so much. I made a lot of
mistakes — goofy things — but when you
fail, it’s something you learn a lot from,”
Williams said of founding the Twinbrook
YMCA.
Then, in 1990, Williams, began working
for the YMCA national office’s fundraising
department. He worked on fundraising cam-
paigns for YMCAs in Pennsylvania and
Maine, before the office was closed.
Williams decided to stay in fundraising
independently, which allowed him to workfrom anywhere while he travelled to carry
out YMCA fundraising campaigns in
Nebraska, Kansas, Ohio and Michigan. He
and his wife took the opportunity to move
back to Michigan in 1991 and lived in a
condo in Byron Center together until Barbara
died in 1997.
Williams continued working in fundrais-
ing until he retired in 2013 and dedicated
himself to Middleville Rotary Club, which
he joined in 2005. He’d been involved in
Rotary while living in Illinois and West
Virginia.
Through Middleville Rotary, Williams
become involved with the nonprofit House to
Homes and took eight service trips to
Antigua, Guatemala, building homes for res-
idents of the area.
As of July 2020, Williams was elected
president of Middleville Rotary Club and
continues to serve in the role. In his time as
president, Williams has helped raise funds
for local scholarships, Rotary International’s
End Polio Now program, the local food pan-
try and more.
Williams said he has prioritized service
throughout his life because of the example
set for him by his parents, Margie and
Charlie Williams, and other influential fig-
ures.
“I just know it’s important. I don’t really
know why. My parents were volunteers. I
learned from the best. My Scoutmaster was a
volunteer. My Sunday school teachers were
volunteers, and they influenced me,”
Williams said. “Why does a person become a
pastor or a priest? They do it for the big
money? No, they don’t. Even to be a teacher,
they don’t make big money. They do it
because they want to make an impact onkids.
“And I think the work that volunteers do is
very important. They save lives, they change
lives. And that’s important.”
For his involvement in YMCAs across the
country and his service as a Rotarian, Bob
Williams is this week’s Banner Bright Light.
Favorite movie: “The Best Years of Our
Lives.”
First job: When I was a kid my parents
had a power lawn mower, which was new at
that time. We got one with a gas engine on it
and I would cut grass for people. Around
Middleville, I had regular customers. I drive
through town now and I look at homes and I
say, ‘I used to cut their grass!’
When I was a kid, I wanted to be a:
Writer.
Favorite book: I usually end up reading
this book once a year, it flies and it’s short.
It’s actually a play by Thornton Wilder, “Our
Town.” It’s terrific.
What I’d tell a high school graduate:
Not to give up. And, if you have some objec-
tive you’re after, it’s hard to know when
you’re close to it. It’s like playing football
without the lines on the field. You don’t
know where the touchdown line is. And you
can be so close and you just don’t know it.
I am most content when: I have a place
that I go in my mind. I imagine being at a
campsite on a lake, hearing a loon or seeing
a loon, a warm breeze blowing across my
face, maybe having a fire, just watching the
fire.
Greatest thing about Barry County: I
think it’s a great place to raise a family. It
hasn’t changed that much from when I was a
kid. If I did something wrong — maybe pull
a girl’s pigtails — some lady would come out
of her house and say, ‘Bobby Williams, leave
that girl alone.’ We value our kids very high-
ly. That’s still true. People volunteer to help
out. It’s a very nice thing.
I’m most proud of: Well, two things. I
think I had quite a successful career. I heard
about a lot of people who want to do some-
thing and then they couldn’t; I always
believed I could, and I did it. And I have two
sons and two daughters and I’m so proud of
them. They’ve turned out so well. I’m just so
proud of each one of them and the lives
they’re leading.Each week, the Banner profiles a person
who makes the community shine. Do you
know someone who should be featured
because of volunteer work, fun-loving per-
sonality, for the stories he or she has to tell or
any other reason? Send information to
Newsroom, Hastings Banner, 1351 N. M-
Highway, Hastings, MI 49058; or
email [email protected].Have you met?
Do you remember?
Editorial page 1
Bob WilliamsA special day to celebrate moms
It doesn’t matter whether she’s a mom,
grandma, favorite aunt, teacher or a family
friend, the women in our lives shape and
define the kind of adults we grow up to be.
I know from experience because my
mom was one of those special moms who
was always there to support me, no matter
what, and was a great example of the kind
of person I should always aspire to be.
“All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my
angel mother,” Abraham Lincoln said.
Children, who are loved, nurtured,
encouraged and spend their formative years
in a safe and loving environment grow up to
be healthy, well-adjusted adults. According
to psychologists, our ability to connect with
the world around us begins with our connec-
tion to Mom.
This Sunday, May 9, families around the
world will celebrate moms of all ages by
expressing their love, appreciation and
respect for the important role mothers play
in our lives.
And even though Mother’s Day is cele-
brated on the second Sunday of May each
year, we should consider every day special
for the mothers in our lives who love us
unconditionally – as someone once said,
“Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes
with a mother.”
Mothers have been described as the glue
that holds the family together; she sets the
standards, and she gives us the strength,
courage and the confidence that define us.
“When you look in your mother’s eyes,
you know that is the purest love you can
find on this earth,” newspaper columnist
and author Mitch Albom said.
Mother’s Day is a time for families to get
together, for children who have moved
away to return home to celebrate that person
who brought them into the world.
Even though consumerism has become
an important part of the way that we express
our gratitude, simple words like “I love
you” and “Thanks for all you do” on her
special day mean so much to moms.
Erma Bombeck, an American humorist
who achieved popularity for her newspaper
columns in the mid-1960s to late 1990s,
wrote about moms and motherhood. Many
of her columns were clipped from newspa-
pers, saved and taped on refrigerators. One
of those columns expressed the role moth-
er’s play in our lives. I share it here:When God Created Mothers
When the Good Lord was creating moth-
ers, He was into His sixth day of “overtime”
when the angel appeared and said, “You’re
doing a lot of fiddling around on this one.”
And God said, “Have you read the specs
on this order? She has to be completely
washable, but not plastic. Have 180 move-
able parts ... all replaceable. Run on black
coffee and leftovers. Have a lap that disap-
pears when she stands up. A kiss that can
cure anything from a broken leg to a disap-
pointed love affair. And six pairs of hands.”
The angel shook her head slowly andsaid, “Six pairs of hands – no way.”
“It’s not the hands that are causing me
problems,” God remarked, “it’s the three
pairs of eyes that mothers have to have.”
“That’s on the standard model?” asked
the angel. God nodded.
“One pair that sees through closed doors
when she asks, “What are you kids doing in
there?” when she already knows. Another
here in the back of her head that sees what
she shouldn’t but what she has to know, and,
of course, the ones here in the front, that can
look at a child when they goof up and say.
“I understand and I love you,” without so
much as uttering a word.”
“God,” said the angel touching his sleeve
gently, “Get some rest tomorrow ...”
“I can’t,” said God, “I’m so close to cre-
ating something so close to myself. Already
I have one who heals herself when she is
sick, can feed a family of six on one pound
of hamburger, and can get a 9-year-old to
stand under a shower.”
The angel circled the model of a mother
very slowly, “It’s too soft,” she sighed. “But
tough,” said God excitedly. “You can imag-
ine what this mother can do or endure.”
“Can it think?” asked the angel.
“Not only can it think, but it can reason
and compromise,” said the Creator.
Finally, the angel bent over and ran her
finger across the cheek. “There’s a leak,”
she pronounced. “I told You that You were
trying to put too much into this model.”
“It’s not a leak,” said the Lord, “it’s a
tear.”
“What’s it for?”
“It’s joy, sadness, disappointment, pain,
loneliness and pride.”
“You are a genius,” said the angel.
Somberly, God said, “I didn’t put it
there.”Bombeck’s observations about life as a
homemaker and stay-at-home mom resonat-
ed with millions of readers and writing
about mothers was one of her favorite sub-
jects.
Mothers are so dear to us – they are first
people we know when we’re born and they
love and care for us as we grow up. So, it’s
important that, once a year, we take time for
moms, tell them how important they’ve
been in our lives and say, “Thanks, Mom,
for all you do.”
“To describe my mother would be to
write about a hurricane in its perfect power,”
poet Maya Angelou wrote.
Mothers are like hurricanes as they whirl
about, managing everyday issues and still
having time to attend to our needs.
“My mother is feisty, but she’s also the
most loving person I’ve met in my life.
When she gets angry, she is unstoppable
with the hurl of word,” Angelou said, “yet
she has the softest heart of anyone I know.
“I thank her for being her.”
So, set aside some special time with
mothers this weekend – they deserve all the
love and appreciation we can give.School retirees
Banner May 30, 1974
Members of the Hastings Education Association honored
eight staff members who are retiring at the close of the 1973-
74 school year. They were the special guests Friday, May 24,
at a banquet at the Hastings Country Club. Retiring are (fromleft) Clay Bassett, a member of the custodial staff; Leona
VanDelic, kindergarten teacher at Pleasantview; Leona
Braidwood, third grade teacher at Pleasantview; Kay Hilson,
department head and math instructor at the junior high;
Gertrude Long, second grade at Southeastern; Dorothy Frost,
secretary at Southeastern; Hazel Johnson, secretary in the
general administration office; and Helen Gray, sixth grade
teacher at Southeastern.Did you see?
Finally, fishing!
The weather’s right. It’s time for fisher-
folk to hit the water. Here, Gun Lake
offers an attractive spot for doing just
that.