Kevin Williams

Obituary For Kevin Williams

Kevin Williams was born on March 9, 1955, and grew up in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He was orphaned at the age of 15 and at 16 became a legally emancipated minor, assuming full adult responsibilities. Kevin loved music and moved to New York City in the early 1970s to take part in the music industry there. With his engaging, courteous manner and quick intelligence he soon found work at the legendary disco Studio 54 and became friendly with many of the musicians and other notable figures in the New York entertainment world of that era. Kevin also helped with recording and staging for various rock bands and toured the USA and Canada as special assistant to the Graham Parker Band. His connections led to opportunities in England, and he lived in London over a period of two years. Then, looking for a quieter life in the 1980s, he moved to upstate New York where he worked for IBM at their Poughkeepsie campus. In the 1990s Kevin's love of music took him to another musical center; Branson, Missouri. There he was associated with many of the local and visiting musicians, particularly the folk duo Brewer and Shipley. In time Kevin became supervisor of a large apartment complex, but multiple health problems, including emphysema, Lyme disease, spinal deterioration, and a devastating rheumatoid arthritis, made it increasingly difficult to work. Eventually pain forced him into retirement, and fifteen years ago he chose Truth or Consequences as an inexpensive destination with a mild climate. At first Kevin did well in T or C, as painkiller medications made it possible for him to live a fairly normal life. Unfortunately, these were arbitrarily cut off in 2016 as a result of new NM drug policies. For the remainder of his life Kevin lived in excruciating pain. Within a year it became too agonizing for him to even walk, and by September 2018 he could no longer stand up and was confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He bore his ordeal with great grace and courage, but his health deteriorated rapidly and from November 2019 he was in hospice care, where he at last received relief from his pain until he died peacefully on February 1, 2020. He was 64 years old. Kevin Williams had an extraordinary gift for friendship. His cheerful, warm, kindly personality won him friends and admirers wherever he went. It can be truly said that the mere mention of his name would bring a broad grin to the faces of all who had known him. Mourned and dearly loved by so many: In New York, Ian, Linda, Nicholas, Monica, Nick, Michael, Jeff, and Simon; in London, Peter, Claudia, Bruno, and Henry; in Branson, Michael and Miss Scarlet, Charlotte, Keith, and Miss Gypsy; and in New Mexico, Jazz and Sylvie, Vivian, Chris and Carol, Alice and Ken, Nita and James, Barbara and Rodney, and Peanut. Thanks, Kevin, for bringing your charm, your smiles, and your generous spirit to the world.