Kenneth Williams, 88, of Indian Woods Road, Branford, formerly of Bradley Street, North Haven, passed away Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at the CT Hospice, Branford. He was the husband of the late Marceline Barrett Williams. Born in Guilford on October 1, 1923; son of the late Robert Victor Williams and Rena Barnes Williams. Ken served his country faithfully as a Sergeant in the U.S. Army during WW II; was a sheet metal worker having worked for G.L. Gray and later at Joseph H. Day until his retirement. Ken was a member of the Sheet Metal Workers Union Local #40 and a volunteer for 35 years at the Northeast Volunteer Fire Department. Father of Christine (Burton) Kelley of East Hartford and Denise (Ronald) Cassella of Branford. Grandfather of Sharri (Ralph) D’Errico III, Jason (Kathy) Coe, Mark, Heather and Rachael Cassella. Great-Grandmother of Marceline and Ralph D’Errico IV. Predeceased by a sister Rena Lane and brothers, Donald, Leon and Norman Williams.
His funeral procession will leave the North Haven Funeral Home, 36 Washington Avenue on Saturday morning at 9:30. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated in St. Frances Cabrini Church, North Haven at 10:00 am. Interment with full military honors will follow in Beaverdale Memorial Park. The visiting hours will be Friday from 5 to 8 pm. Should friends desire, memorial contributions may be made to the CT Hospice, Inc., 100 Double Beach Rd., Branford, CT 06405.
My Uncle Kenny was my dad’s younger brother (my dad is Norman Williams). We moved out west to Arizona, but I enjoyed every visit to see Uncle Kenny in Connecticut – especially the time when both my dad and I were able to make the trip together. I am really grateful for the most recent visit with Uncle Kenny in October of 2010 along with my wife Lucille. Many thanks to Chris and Denise for helping to make our visit such a memorable one. I’ll miss my Uncle Kenny and I’ll miss the ability to ask about our family history. I enjoyed the occasional funny story about hopping rides on the trolley cars and the wilder antics of his oldest brother, my Uncle Don. I wish we had all lived closer so the visits could have been more frequent. While we are unable to physically attend the service, please know Lucille and I are with you in spirit.
I worked with Ken at the Yale-New Haven Hospital back in the ’70s. He was my best mentor-teacher as a sheet metal apprentice. I remember helping him assemble a “bosen-chair”(not correct spelling) , then working in an air-shaft replacing some old exhaust duct. He did most of it, of course. He only let me work in the chair after he was sure I was comfortable and properly instructed!
Ken was such a great guy to have worked with in the Sheet Metal Trade.
We worked together at GL Gray and Industrial SM,
We always had a great time working and always got the job done.
God Bless Ken.
Ken’s brother Don was my grandfather (Don’s daughter Joanne is my mom). I remember Ken from the many Williams reunions and holidays in Hamden. In the summer when I visited with my grandfather, ‘Uncle Kenny’ would often come visit and between the two they’d have plenty of stories. We need more family reunions! My son Joseph carries on the Barnes tradition as his middle name. I hope to attend Friday, best to you all.