Wayne Wynn Williams, Jr.

Minden, LA Services will be held for Mr. Wayne "Butch" Wynn Williams, Jr. at the First Baptist Church in Minden at 2 p.m., Sunday, March 25, 2018. Brother Leland Crawford will perform the service, with burial following at Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Minden. Visitation will be held Saturday, March 24 from 5-8 p.m. at Rose-Neath Funeral Home in Minden. Butch passed away on March 21 after a lengthy battle with cancer. Butch was born on June 21, 1947 in Haynesville, La. Butch and his parents would move to Minden in 1950, which he would call home the rest of his life. Following in the footsteps of his father, Butch devoted his life to education, athletics and the youth of Webster Parish, as well as the state. Butch was a 1965 graduate of Minden High School, and a member of the 1963 AA State Championship Football Team where he was an end, a linebacker and placekicker. After graduation, he attended Louisiana Polytechnic Institute, later known as Louisiana Tech, on a football scholarship, where he lettered for four years as an offensive tackle, providing protection for teammate and future NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback Terry Bradshaw. Butch earned All-Gulf States Conference honors his senior year by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. It was after he played in the State Fair game against Northwestern State one night that he met the love of his life of 48 years, Ki, who was a Sigma Kappa at Tech from Mangham. On April 3, they would have celebrated their 49^th anniversary. Butch, who was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, would earn a degree from Louisiana Tech in Physical Education and Science, and later a Master's Degree plus 30 certification in Educational Administration. He began his teaching career at Glenbrook, becoming its first head coach. He then returned to his alma mater, Minden High School, where he taught biology and chemistry, and served as an assistant football and basketball coach. In only his second year as head baseball coach for the Minden Crimson Tide, Butch led the team to the State AAA Championship in 1972, beating an undefeated Bossier High team by a score of 3-0 in a no-hit, no run game. He was named Class AAA Baseball Coach of the Year in 1974. Seeing a need in the community for a sporting goods store, Butch and Ki, along with Dr. Tom Alley, opened Minden Athletic in 1973. They acquired full ownership a few years later and it continues to serve the athletic needs of the surrounding community. In 1977, Butch would begin teaching chemistry and biology at Sibley High School, until he was appointed assistant principal at Minden High in 1979. The stay was short, as he was named principal at Sibley High just a few weeks later where he remained as head of the school, later becoming Lakeside High, for the next 24 years. While principal, Sibley won back-to-back basketball championships, setting a national record of 100 consecutive wins, as well as several state baseball championships. Butch was instrumental in bringing football, track and cross country to the school. While at Sibley, Butch worked with community leaders to build a new Jr. High and High School for the South Webster community, which would become Lakeside Jr./Sr. High School. He was proud of his students, often following their careers long after their graduation. He was especially proud of the number of doctors, engineers and educators that were produced from Sibley and Lakeside. Butch was named Louisiana State High School Principal of the Year in 2001, and later named the Met-Life Principal of the Year for Louisiana, where he earned a trip to Washington to participate in the National Principal of the Year competition. He also served on the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Executive Board for several years. In 2003, Butch was named Superintendent of Schools for Webster Parish, a job his father had previously held in the 1970s. As superintendent he oversaw the consolidation or rebuilding of schools throughout the parish, including Minden High, North Webster and Doyline. He was awarded the 4-H Superintendent's Award in 2005 by the Louisiana 4-H Youth Development Program, as well as was inducted into the Louisiana 4-H Hall of Fame in 2008. He continued coaching the youth of Webster Parish for more than 30 years as a little league and American Legion baseball coach, leading several teams to regional and state appearances. Butch was at the forefront in helping bring attention for the need of a new recreation complex for the youth of Minden, after seeing teams practicing in parking lots because of lack of space. He would serve on the recreation committee that eventually got voters to approve the complex. Upon his retirement in 2011, Butch turned his passion to watching and spending time with his grandchildren, as well as catching White Perch in area lakes. He also discovered a green thumb he did not realize he had in his younger years, enjoying spending time in the yard planting flowers, and especially watching his tulips bloom each spring. For his efforts, he received Yard of the Month on a few occasions, as well as became a LSU AgCenter Master Gardener. He was preceded in death by his parents, Wayne Wynn Williams, Sr. and Irene Botkins Williams. Survivors include his wife, Karen \"Ki\" Marlowe Williams; sons Wayne \"Trey\" Wynn Williams III and wife Anne Stuckey Williams of Baton Rouge; Christopher Marlowe Williams and wife Leigh Anne Hilburn Williams of Minden; Gregory Kyle Williams and wife Heather Hampton Williams of Shreveport; brother James Byron Williams and wife Suzanne Kilgore Williams of Sibley; six grandchildren, Julia Catherine Williams of Baton Rouge; Ella Marlowe Williams of Minden; Marlee Anne Williams of Minden; Elizabeth Wynn Williams of Baton Rouge; McCoy Wayne Williams of Shreveport; Marlowe Wynn Williams of Shreveport, and a future grandchild that is expected in August, along with numerous nieces and nephews. Pallbearers are Bud Copeland, Gary Haynes, Jerry Lott, Winky Newer, Richard Noles and Johnny Rowland. Honorary pallbearers are Bobby Ashley, Ronnie Brown, Dr. Chris Earnhardt, Glenn Murphy, Johnny Richard, Leo Sanford, Morris Busby, Gene Reynolds and all former teammates, players and coaches. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Webster Parish Educational Endowment Fund or to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Rose-Neath Funeral Home 211 Murrell Street Minden, Louisiana 71055 (318) 377-3412