Mrs. Lillian (nee Croom) Williams, an award-winning East St. Louis public school teacher, died peacefully with her family by her side on Friday, September 27, 2019, at Garden View Care Center of Chesterfield. She was 97. Mrs. Williams was known for her fierce commitment to three social pillars: family, community, and education. She was the wife of the late Attorney James E. Williams Sr., the first African-American mayor of East St. Louis, Illinois, elected in 1971. Born June 8, 1922 in D’Lo, Mississippi, to the union of Noah and Carrie Croom. She was one of ten children with her brother, Noah, as her only surviving sibling.
She taught in East St. Louis public schools for more than four decades until her retirement in 1994. Recognized for her award-winning science education projects, she won the coveted Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching. Former student Thelma Byrd-Tabron said, “I remember Mrs. Williams being the kindest teacher and so caring about her students.” She “made a little shy girl [like me] feel special which is what she did for all her students.” Mrs. Williams lived through the racially-segregated Jim Crow era of the South, the Great Depression, and World War II, all periods of time that made a direct impact upon her generation.
She received her early education in Electric Mills, Mississippi, later attending schools in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, before moving North to East St. Louis. After graduating from Lincoln Senior High in East St. Louis, she attended Wilberforce University where she met her husband. In 1945, he graduated from Wilberforces with honors in biology. In the East St. Louis public schools, Mrs. Williams taught first-grade classes at both Washington School and Dunbar school. After earning her master’s in science education at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, she taught science at Dunbar, leading students to top honors in science competitions.
Mrs. Williams was a founding member and president of East St. Louis Volunteers, a group that raised money for the city’s police and fire departments; the East St. Louis Women’s Club, and past president of the East St. Louis chapter of the Jack & Jill organization. She also served as president of both the East St. Louis Community Camp Board and the Lessie Bates Neighborhood House. At Greater New Hope Baptist Church. she was active in Sunday School and Baptist Training Union during the early years of her church membership. “We went to church every Sunday, rain or shine,” she often said. “A spiritual foundation helps guide you in life and differentiate between right and wrong.” Other than God, she often said that family life trumped all her other activities. She is survived by her five children: Lillian Starks of Chicago, Illinois; Sherrie May of Denver, Colorado; Theresa (Donald) Lyons of Yorktown, Virginia; James (Janet) E. Williams Jr. and Darcell (Melvin) Butler, both of St. Louis, Missouri, and a brother, Noah Croom of Warrensville Heights, Ohio. She leaves behind eight grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and a host of nieces and nephews.
