Michael George Williams

Michael George Williams passed away on Friday, February 27th, at the age of 63, due to complications from a bacterial infection. Michael was born on Father's Day, June 17th 1951 to George and Doris Thomas Williams of Baltimore, Maryland. While he was still very young, his parents divorced. A few years later, his mother, Doris met and married Arnette Newton, a soldier stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland. Shortly afterwards, Michael's stepfather was stationed in Germany where the family lived for a few years before coming to Phoenix where Michael would live the rest of his life. Michael attended school in the Roosevelt School District in Phoenix where his mother was a teacher. Even as a child, he often astounded his teachers with his intellect and his passion for reading. After graduating from North High School, he attended Northern Arizona University where he met Kristine Johnson who would eventually become his wife. In 1974, Michael went to work for what was then the Mountain Bell Telephone Company. He started as a custodian but as his special abilities were recognized, he rose through the ranks of management even as the company went through various corporate changes from Mountain Bell to U.S. West to Qwest. Eventually, Michael would work in the Public Policy Department where he became a liaison between the corporate legal department, the Corporation Commission and the Arizona Legislature. Michael and Kristine were married in 1975, a time when inter-racial marriages were still somewhat rare. Their daughter, Corrine was born in 1979 and their son, Thomas was born in 1982. They divorced in 1993 but remained good friends for the remainder of Michael's life. Michael retired from Qwest in 2006. He continued to work in the communications field for a short time, lending his expertise to some smaller communication companies. He also indulged his passion for golf by working for the City of Phoenix as a golf pro before health issues forced him to resign. Michael is survived by his wife Kristine Williams, their children Corrine and Thomas Williams, his brother Charles Newton, his sister Kathleen Newton, his cousin Reginald Thomas, his nephew John Anderson, his nieces Julie Anderson, Anastasia Newton, Victoria and Vanessa Walters, his sister-in-law Sharon Anderson, his daughter-in-law Hillary Schultz Williams and a grandchild on the way. A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday morning, March 7th at 10:00am at Samaritan Funeral Home, located at 1505 East McDowell Road in Phoenix. Attendees will be invited to share stories about Michael. The Family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Kids Need To Read, an organization that works to create a culture of reading for children by providing inspiring books to underfunded schools, libraries and literacy programs across the United States, especially those serving disadvantaged children. More information at kidsneedtoread.org