John Ashby "Dick" Williams

John was born in Washington D.C. on June 16, 1934 to John Ashby Williams, Jr. and Marion Almquist Williams. John better known as Dick, graduated from Herndon H.S. in Virginia in 1951. He joined the Marines, served in Korea and was released in 1954 as a Buck Sergeant. In 1954 he moved to the Bay Area and was a Police Officer from 1955 to 1963 with El Cerrito and Berkeley Police departments. While working as an officer, Dick received a BA and secondary teaching credential from Cal State Hayward. He was hired by Castro Valley H.S. in 1964 as a teacher, earned a MS degree was promoted to Dean of Boys and later Vice Principal. In 1975, he was hired by Petaluma School District as Dir. of Adult & Voc. Ed., where he retired from in 1997. After his retirement he continued his work as a part time counselor with SRJC's Petaluma Campus until 2003. Dick was a member of the Marine Corps League & Veterans of Foreign Wars, Kansas City Chapter. Dick was the loving husband of Mary Pinheiro Williams. The loving father of Mike (Patti) Williams of Wheatland, Karen (Greg) Santos of Pleasant Hill and Doug Williams of Santa Rosa. The loving stepfather of Natalie (Peter) Kalogiannis of Cotati, David Mattos of Petaluma, eleven grandchildren, five great grandchildren, and a deceased sister, Martha Sue Williams of Colorado. Dick loved spending time with "His Kids" 3 dogs; Misty, Zoey and Ren. He enjoyed yard work, classic cars and spending time in Bodega Bay. His favorite quote, "If you care to see a power greater than yourself then watch the waves coming in and striking the rocks". Dick passed away after an extended battle with heart disease. He was thankful to Kaiser ER in Santa Rosa for reviving him after his heart attack in 1997. They gave him the chance to see the birth of five additional grandchildren, 2 step grandchildren and five great grandchildren. A blessing created by the wonderful staff at Kaiser ER and ICU. "Thank you". Semper Fi! Visitation will be held on Tuesday, October 1, 2013 from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm at PARENT-SORENSEN MORTUARY & CREMATORY, 850 Keokuk St., Petaluma. Family and friends are also invited to attend the Funeral Service, Wednesday, October 2, 2013 at 2:00 pm at PARENT-SORENSEN. The family prefer memorials be made to the Petaluma Animal Services.