Margret Marie (Lawrence) Williams
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Margret Marie (Lawrence) Williams, 82, of West Frankfort, departed this world for a better place, Thursday evening, March 26, 2009, surrounded by family at the home of her daughter.
She was born June 8, 1926, in West Frankfort to Hosea Drew and Gladys Marie (Choate) Lawrence. She married David Earl Williams, also of West Frankfort, July 12, 1943, in South Mills, N.C.
She is survived by her husband, Earl, and her four children, one daughter, Karen (Earl) Buffington of West Frankfort; and three sons, Jerry (Judy) Williams of Harrisburg, Denny (Debbie) Williams of West Frankfort and Greg (Bonnie) Williams of Gilbert, Ariz.; nine grandchildren, Lisa (Kevin) Small of Martinsville, Lori (Sherman) Owen of Harrisburg, Matt (Kim) Buffington of Puryear, Tenn., Leslea (Adam) Barnes of Marion, Ky., Melissa (Jeff) Bush of New Zealand, Jason Williams of Phoenix, Ariz., Josh Williams of Harrisburg, Miles Williams and Bryan Williams both of West Frankfort; nine great-grandchildren, David and Bebecca Small, Hannah and Dusty Owen, Wyatt Buffington, Emmalea and Morgan Barnes, and Quentin and Chloe Bush. She is survived by one sister, Naomi Burris of Worth.
She was preceded in death by her parents; one sister, Olean Goodman; and three brothers, Wilbert, Alva and Clifford Lawrence.
She was a member of Antioch Methodist Church, east of West Frankfort. Margret graduated from Thompsonville Community High School in 1941.
After World War II, Margret and Earl moved to Detroit, Mich., and then, after a short time in St. Petersburg, Fla., they returned to Southern Illinois. Among so many things that Margret did, she along with Earl and their children owned and ran the West End General Store in West End. She worked at the A.L. Bowen Center in Harrisburg and Manpower Development Center in West Frankfort. After retiring from the International Student Division at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, she was executive director of Volunteer Services Incorporated in Marion and was instrumental in moving them to West Frankfort. She served as a board member of the Illinois Community Action Association in Springfield and as a board member and board president of Franklin County Senior Services.
Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Monday, March 30, 2009, at the Antioch Methodist Church in West Frankfort with the Rev. Don Bowers officiating. Burial will be in the East Fork Cemetery in West Frankfort. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday, March 29, 2009, at the Parker-Reedy Funeral Home in West Frankfort and after 9 a.m. Monday at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Antioch Methodist Church or to Hospice of Southern Illinois and will be accepted at the funeral home and church. For more information or to sign the guest register, you may visit the Internet site www.parkerreedyfuneralhome.com.