A former longtime Rocky Mount firefighter, whose service includes having been in the U.S. Marine Corps and having been deployed to the Middle East and Southern Asia as a U.S. Army reservist, received a hand-made quilt in appreciation of his military service, sacrifice and valor.
Earl Williams Jr. was honored at a gathering late last month at Fire Station No. 1 off East Raleigh Boulevard. A quilt that Williams gets to keep was placed on his shoulders at the event thanks to the efforts of the Quilts of Valor Foundation.
The foundation, which is based in Iowa, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing quilts to active-duty military service members and veterans touched by war, with the quilts crafted to provide comfort and healing.
“I appreciate everyone for coming out — and thank y’all so much,” Williams said.
Williams also expressed appreciation to his wife, Linda, to former Rocky Mount City Clerk Jean Bailey and to former Municipal Clerk Elizabeth Kiss of East Brunswick, N.J.
Bailey and Kiss led the gathering, which was held June 22. The two have been friends because Bailey was president of the International Institute of Municipal Clerks for 2003-04 and Kiss was president for 2004-05.
Williams served in the Marines from 1986-91, having achieved the rank of sergeant, and in the fire department from 1991-2021, having achieved the rank of engineer.
Williams served in the Army reserves from 1992-2012, including as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, which resulted in the seizure of Baghdad, and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, which was launched after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
Additionally, Williams promised Bailey after her husband died in 2011 that he would take care of her.
Kiss is a member of the Turtle Creek Peacemakers chapter of the Quilts of Valor Foundation. A couple of years ago, Kiss visited Bailey and subsequently met Williams.
After Kiss and Williams started talking about what he had done in the past, Kiss told Williams about working with the foundation — and she eventually would make the quilt that Williams received at Fire Station No. 1.
The gathering June 22 was held in the afternoon in the engine room and amid sweltering conditions, with a large fan close by to help provide relief.
Bailey, who spoke first, had to pause briefly because a team of firefighters had to board a fire truck to respond to a call.
Rocky Mount fire Chief Darvin Moore, in brief remarks at the gathering, recalled being a rookie and Williams being candid and upfront with him.
Moore said that Williams always told him, “You’re never too old or you’re never too young to learn. You always want to progress all the time. You always grow professionally and personally as well, too.”
During the gathering, Rocky Mount Mayor Sandy Roberson also presented Williams with a commemorative city coin.
Bailey returned to the speaker’s podium and read aloud Williams’ military record and honors, but she said that his service in uniform did not tell the entire story of his life.
Bailey said that when Williams’ son, Earl Williams III, was playing football while in school, the father dedicated himself to not only the son but to making sure that all the players had the appropriate gear and whatever was needed to make them a successful team.
Of Earl Williams Jr., Bailey also said of the team, “He mentored them in good manners, respect and the importance of always being on time.”
She also said that he instilled confidence in them that they could be successful after they graduated from high school.
The Quilts of Valor Foundation was established in 2003 by a quilter, Catherine Roberts, whose son was an Army soldier deployed to Iraq and who served as a gunner atop a Humvee.
Kiss told the gathering June 22 that Roberts enlisted friends in making Quilts of Valor for those who have served and that the effort has grown to more than 413,000 of them having been made and presented.
- William F. West Staff Writer
