Jane Williams Kilmarnock, Virginia Obituary

Jane Williams

Jane Stouffer Williams, 80, of Wicomico Church, VA, passed away from complications resulting from a stroke on January 14, 2009. Her loving husband, Donald C. Williams, was at her bedside, along with her daughter, and her sister. A memorial service was held January 17, at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, in Kilmarnock, VA. Mrs. Williams was a life-long artist, and her work graces several public buildings in both Northumberland and Lancashire Counties. She designed the cross for St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, in Kilmarnock, logos and seals for Northumberland County, the Historical Society, and several private businesses. Her poster for the Gloucester Daffodil Festival is still being displayed years after she won the poster contest twice, in 1995 and 1997. Mrs. Williams taught studio art, print making, drawing, and painting for 40 years, both in private and adult education classes. She also helped teach European art seminars for Northeastern University, in Boston. She was a former president of the Mathews Art Group and the Rappahannock Art League, for whom she regularly conducted art history tours, to the museums in Washington, DC. Mrs. Williams, the author and illustrator of a children’s book, was also the president of the Chesapeake Bay Branch of the National League of American Pen Women. Mrs. Williams was born in Hartley, IA, in 1928. Her father, Samuel Stouffer, was a world famous Harvard sociologist. She grew up, the second of three children, in the Hyde Park neighborhood at the University of Chicago, and moved eventually to Boston, nearby Harvard University, where her father taught. She attended the University of Wisconsin, graduating in 1950 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Art Education. She attended the Boston Museum School for five years, before receiving a fellowship which enabled her to study art in Italy for one year. It was at the Boston Museum School that she met her first husband, with whom she had three children. Mrs. Williams met her second husband, Mr. Williams, while attending a sailing club on the Charles River in Boston. They were married for over 30 years. They first moved to this area, to a house in Moon, VA, then to Wicomico Church, to a house on the Chesapeake, in the 1980s. The Williams family has been maritime enthusiasts whose interest in sailing drew them to settle in the Northern Neck. Mrs. Williams created most of her works in the second-floor studio that her husband lovingly designed and constructed by hand for her. Mr. Williams assisted his wife by constructing many of the unusual-shaped painting canvases and frames for her work. He also designed and created an etching press for his wife. She is survived by her husband, Mr. Williams, of Wicomico Church; her daughter, Victoria Ann Newman, of Overland Park, KS; two sons, Andrew Cooper Wells, of Ingleburn, New South Wales, Australia, and Randall Stouffer Wells, of Slidell, LA; three children by marriage, Carolyn W. Thomas, of Fitchburg, MA, Carl Williams of West Brookfield, MA, and Elizabeth Welty, of Santa Cruz, CA; and a granddaughter, Ruth Maricola; nine grandchildren by marriage; a sister, Ann Bisconti Dyke, of Chevy Chase, MD; and a sister-in-law, Edith Stouffer, of The Woodlands, TX. The family has requested that memorials may be made to the Siamese Cat Rescue Center, 366 Meander Run Rd., Locust Dale, VA 22948.
April 24, 1928 - January 14, 200904/24/192801/14/2009
Share Obituary:

Share a memory

Add to your memory
Photos/Video
Candle
Mementos

Tribute wall

Plant a tree in memory of Jane

An environmentally friendly option

Celebrating the life of Jane Williams

Be the first to share your favorite memory, photo or story of Jane. This memorial page is dedicated for family, friends and future generations to celebrate the life of their loved one.

We ask on behalf of the family that you keep your comments uplifting and appropriate to help all who come here to find comfort and healing