Lillian Louise Williams

Lillian Louise Williams

1923 – 2020

Lillian Williams not only talked about being a Christian, she showed she was a Christian by the way she lived her life. She passed away at the age of 96 ½ on Monday, May 11, 2020, in Edmond, Oklahoma, with family at her side.

She was born October 26, 1923, the oldest of three children to Roscoe Morris and Ruby (Lum) Morris in Washita County, Oklahoma. Her father died when she was only six years old, and her mother kept the family together and raised up Lillian and the two younger brothers, Douglas Morris and Lonnie Morris, during the 1930’s.

Lillian graduated from Rocky High School in 1942. During the war years, her job was in the Oklahoma City area, where she worked for Douglas Aircraft, installing motor mounts on C-47 aircraft, in the defense industry.

She married Kelso Lee Williams on October 26, 1946 in Cordell, Oklahoma. They celebrated their 70^th wedding anniversary in October, 2016.

After farming a brief time, she and Kelso moved to Stillwater where he attended Oklahoma A & M. Upon Kelso’s graduation from college in 1951, the family moved to Meade, Kansas and Kelso began working as a soil conservationist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

During their time in Meade, both of their daughters, Becky Jean and Pamela Ann, were born. While living in Meade, Lillian was very active as a Girl Scouts leader and in the church of Christ.

In 1968, Kelso was transferred to Hill City, Kansas. She and Kelso became active in clock and watch collecting there. While living in Hill City, Lillian began her career in the banking industry at Consolidated State Bank. She continued to work in the banking industry after she and Kelso moved back to Cordell, Oklahoma, in 1978, and later retired from the Cordell National Bank.

They lived in Cordell for about 35 years and were active members of the Northside Church of Christ in Cordell for many years. She and Kelso were a team and they stayed busy reconnecting with family and friends, and raising wheat, cotton, and cattle on the farm that had been in the Watson-Williams family for over 60 years at that time. It has now become an Oklahoma Centennial Farm and is still in the family. They also deepened their love for collecting and restoring antique tractors. Much enjoyment and many a day was spent in the shop, repainting and doing body work on one of their cherished red Farmall tractors (all about 1950ish vintage.) She and Kelso were members of the Hobart Antique Tractor Club, and had tractor friends all across the Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas area.

Lillian and Kelso retired again at age 85, and enjoyed their quieter trips to the farm “just to check on things” as well as spending time there with the family including their grandkids, and hosting “Camp Grandkids.”

Lillian was an avid sports fan, especially baseball and the Atlanta Braves, the KC Royals and the Texas Rangers. She was an OSU fan, especially basketball, and loved the Eddie Sutton coaching days at OSU. She was still attending games in person at age 85, when she broke her ankle going to the OSU-Missouri game at the Big XII tournament in OKC. She had surgery on the ankle, and was back attending OSU games the next season in Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater. Setbacks just never set Lillian back. She was a faithful wife, mother and grandmother, and if you wanted to get her to smile, just get her to talk about her two daughters or grandchildren, whom she loved dearly.

She loved people, loved staying busy and life, but especially loved being a Christian. One of her mottos was “I’d rather wear out, than rust out” and she lived life accordingly. She loved cooking, reading, playing cards, gardening, doing puzzles, and sewing and quilting, and she hand-pieced a quilt for each of the grandchildren and was over the age of 90 years young when the last king-sized quilt was completed.

In December 2013, Lillian and Kelso moved to Edmond, Oklahoma, and made many new friends in this new segment of their lives at Copper Lake Independent Living (now Lyndale). They worshiped at the Edmond church of Christ. Kelso predeceased her on January 11, 2017.

Lillian was also preceded in death by her parents; stepfather, Troy E. Batt; two brothers, Lonnie Morris and Doug Morris; four sisters-in-law, Marilyn Morris, Oleta Morris, Gwendolyne Finley, and Glenna Alexander; two brothers-in-law, T.J. Finley, and R.L. Alexander; and one nephew, Richard Alexander.

Lillian is survived by her daughters, Becky Rogers, (Cleon) of Little Rock, AR, and Pamela Hammonds (Glen) of Edmond, OK.; grandchildren, Claire Rogers of Tulsa, OK; Lauren Hammonds Johnson (Kevin) of Edmond, OK; Alex Rogers, of Sterling, Virginia; Nick Rogers of Baltimore, MD; Emily Rogers (David) of Little Rock, AR; Austin Hammonds (Kali) of Edmond, OK; and two great-grandchildren, June Rogers of Tulsa, OK, and Max Grinter of Little Rock, Ark. and a host of others she was proud to call family and friends.

Memorials can be made to In Search of the Lord’s Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083, or your local food bank.

A graveside service will be held on May 13, 2020 at 3pm at Lawnview Cemetery, Cordell, Oklahoma. Funeral services are under the direction of Matthews Funeral Home, Edmond, Oklahoma.

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