James H. Williams (Scat)

D.O.B. – 12/22/1916

D.O.D – 4/15/1998

Nickname: SCAT

Today I am going to try to convey to you what kind of person Pops was.

        He was a true patriot. While in the service during WWII, he received the Bronze Star for bravery beyond the call of duty. Dad was a medic in the Pacific theater. He was attached to the 77th Division, 302nd engineers. Dad fought through beach head landings on Leyte, Guam and Okinawa. He also dutied in Japan. The story of how he earned his Bronze Star was told to me many years ago when I was a child.

       A ship carrying Dad and other soldiers from one island to the next was attacked and hit by Japanese planes. The ship was so badly damaged it had to be beached on a nearby island to offload the troops before it sank or blew up. All were told to abandon ship. There were many men on the ship that were wounded from the attack. The ship was still under attack on the beach, so troops were told to take cover on the island until help came and then they would go back for the wounded. Dad and another medic would not leave the wounded. The two of them continued to take the wounded off one at a time until the attack planes were shot down. At that time the rest of the troops came out of cover to help them. Dad said he got his butt peeled for disobeying an order, then along came this medal. This story would always come to mind every time I saw Pops in his V.F.W. uniform when I was a kid. Pops was very proud of being a veteran. 

       He was commander of the Leroy, New York V.F.W. during the 50’s and had a 24-man drill team comprised of veterans of the 2nd World War. He took much pride in parading this drill team at most of the fireman carnivals and county fairs. I remember some of the antics that he would pull with this drill team such as marching them off the parade grounds at the Caledonia Fair and directly into the men’s room without missing a step. I also remember a time in Avon when he marched them up the hill on Main St. and proceeded to march them directly into a bar, but these guys were serious with their drill team. They won several awards while enjoying the comradery.

     Dad was also very active in the Moose here in Leroy. He was Governor of the Lodge and earned the Fellowship Degree and was a Moose Legionnaire. He was also a life member.

     Pops got involved with the American Legion during the 60’s. He was Post Commander, County Commander, District Commandeer, State Sergeant of Arms, Legionnaire of the year in Leroy, and was Chaplain for many years. He was a life member of the American Legion. He was also very involved with the Forty & 8, another part of the Legion, where he held the office of Chef de Gare and Chaplain.

He coordinated and performed 131 military funerals for the American Legion. At all of these funerals he had a sincere and heartfelt respect for each and every one of his fallen comrades. Whenever he was called upon for this duty, he never faltered or said, “I have had enough, let someone else do it.” He did not stop at this self-appointed obligation until he was too weak to perform it.

Dad was an artist at heart. He drew cartoon caricatures for the military newspaper, THE HALF TRACK & PONTON, the 302 Engineers paper. His little character was T.S. Card.

           Anyone who walked into post 576 in Leroy saw his handiwork. Any sign to be made in the last 20 years for the Legion, Dad had a hand in it. Whether it was raffles, organizational meetings or just plain patriotic artwork to hang on the wall, Dad was there to do the artwork and signs. He had paintings and signs not only in the Legion in Leroy, but also in Pennsylvania. where he used to frequent other V.F.W. and Legion posts. He had signs and paintings in Florida and Texas. I think one of his greatest accomplishments was the mural he painted on our shop wall when he was losing sight in one eye due to cataracts. With his grandkids he would ask them to give him a number and he would make a caricature of it for them. 

   He was an avid sportsman. He like to hunt, fish and enjoy nature the way God meant us to see it. Dad never missed the first day of pheasant season for many years. He taught me to hunt squirrels when I was 5 years old. He taught me how to handle a gun before I was 7. By the time I was 10 he had gotten Gary and I to memorize and perform the manual of arms. There were plenty of hunting trips to P.A. for partridge, turkey or deer. There are also some very fond memories of fishing trips to Butterfield Lake and Onieda Lake.    

     Let me talk about Pops and his family life. He loved Mom with all his heart. You could see it in his eyes every time he looked at her. 52 years of marriage and all the love that anyone could ask for. Every time the tune Stardust was heard by either one of them you could see the loving memories just fill them up. He used to say to Mom “I’ll only Love You Forever!!”

There were never any arguments between Dad and Mom. Dad would say it takes 2 to make an argument, so when any disagreements were at hand, he would be silent. Then with an “I’m sorry” and always a kiss goodnight he would bring their love to the surface.  

     As for my brother Gary and I, we had a dad and a best buddy. We could talk to him like a friend and just shoot the breeze. When the chips were down and Gary or I were at fault for something gone wrong, there were never any “I told you so’s” or “if you had listened to me” from Pops. He was there right with you to help you pull your wagon out of the fire. My brother and I had many a drink with our “best buddy”, while friends would ask, “How is it that you and your Ole’ man get along so well?” Our answer was, “He is just as good a friend as he is a father.” Pops had this relationship with his grand kids as well.

      I believe there is more than one of my first cousins that can say the same thing about their uncle. Yes, he was an uncle, but more than that, when they had a problem or needed to talk to someone with a sympathetic ear, Uncle Jim was always there to listen.

Love and respect, it goes a long way in our family.

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