Filed under: Family | Tags: joel edward williamson, obituary, washington post
My father passed away on September 24. We held a funeral service for him on September 30, and he was cremated a couple days later. His remains will be laid to rest on December 4. The wait is due to the backlog of dead soldiers waiting for spaces to clear at Arlington National Cemetery.
The Washington Post refused to publish his obituary because according to their criteria he was not a “long-term resident”. According to the Post, five years as a youth plus the last 13 – a total of 18 – does not qualify one as a member of the DC area community. Nor does the fact that he had bought a house (which he was sadly in the process of remodeling), was active in his local church and other organizations, and had held several military and civilian posts of considerable responsibility factor into the equation. Never mind that he gave 30 years of distinguished service to his country, during which he was virtually without a hometown.
As you can see, I am still a little bitter.
Since the Post has refused to publish my father’s obituary, and he really belongs to no other community, I am going to post it here:
Joel Edward Williamson
Colonel U. S. Army (retired)Joel Edward Williamson, 60, who served in the U. S. Army for 30 years and worked with the military as a civilian following his retirement, died suddenly at the Virginia Hospital Center on September 24.
Joel was born in Brookings, SD, and moved to Alexandria, VA, at age 13. He graduated from Francis C. Hammond High School and attended the College of William and Mary, participating in the ROTC program during his four years there. In the space of one month in 1971, Joel graduated from college, married Nancye Beth Caskey, his high school sweetheart, and entered the Army.
Over the course of his distinguished career as an infantry officer, Joel served as a platoon leader, company commander and twice as an aide-de-camp. He commanded a training battalion at Fort Benning, GA. He was a military assistant to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and served as the garrison commander of Fort Drum, NY. He returned to the Washington, DC area in 1996, settling in Vienna, VA, and finished his career at the Pentagon in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and CSA.
Following his retirement, Joel worked as a contractor and then returned to the Pentagon in 2006 as Director, Administration and Resources in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/4/7, Department of the Army, a position he held until his death. He was posthumously awarded the Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service, which is the highest commendation that can be conferred upon a civilian by the Army.
He was an active member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Vienna and the Optimist Club of Greater Vienna, VA. Joel’s interests included travel, reading, and sports. He will be remembered by those who knew him best as a devoted family man who enjoyed nothing more than spending time with his family.
He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Nancye; son Patrick of Honolulu, HI; son Daniel of Washington, DC; daughter Joellen of New York, NY; father Edward Williamson; sister Theanne Peterson of Brookings, SD; sister Kristin O’Meara of Rochester, MN; and two grandchildren.
On August 28 Taiyo reached the big oh-five. We celebrated with a big old beach barbecue at Kaimana. Unfortunately between grill and lifeguard duty, I was unable to get behind the camera. I really need to work on my multi-tasking. Can I use my maleness as an excuse?
On a side note, we had an illustrative confrontation prior to the party. Mizuho had heard from her friends that it would be better to obtain a permit for our party from the Public Parks Authority. We did, and made the (apparently false) assumption that this then entitled us to “land rights”. When we presented our permit to a gentleman who had set up in the area we were hoping to use, he looked at us like we were batshit insane and claimed to have never heard of anybody getting a permit for holding an event, folded his arms, and refused to budge, having staked out his ground hours earlier. When we mentioned our story to people at the party, many were able to relate similar experiences. Another culture lesson learned!
Filed under: Activities, Family, Hawaii, Kids, Sport | Tags: AYSO, goal, soccer dad
I have officially joined the “soccer dad” demographic. Today was Taiyo’s first game in the AYSO five-year old league. Unfortunately the other team had one of those kids with two older brothers who play soccer, so he shredded Taiyo’s team’s defense like lettuce. However, I am proud to report that Taiyo represented with two goals of his own. It just so happened that one of those was in his own net…
Filed under: Activities, Big Island, Dining, Family, Hawaii, Travel | Tags: Big Island, hilo, lushness
Fourth of July weekend, parents in town, three day weekend. We jetted over to the Big Island, our collective first visit. Now the Big Island is, as per its namesake… big. We knew it would be impossible to digest in 2.5 days, and so we picked Hilo as our base, opting against the Disney-esque resorts of the Kona side for something a little more authentically Hawaiian.
Stepping off the plane the senses are immediately assaulted, with peaceful violence, by lushness. Hilo is one of the wettest places on the planet, and the foliage bears witness to this fact. We picked up our gas-guzzling, planet-destroyin’ SUV, and headed for the Dolphin Bay Hotel. This modest little row of condos lies just outside downtown Hilo, and though overpriced, is an enjoyable stay. The owner, John, doubles as a font of local knowledge, and is an invaluable resource. He is also the curator of a small jungle garden at the rear of the property, featuring a grove of banana trees that provides part of the fresh fruit breakfast every morning.
Our next stop was the legendary Ken’s House of Pancakes where I ordered one of the more disgusting culinary creations known to man. (That’s a stack of fried eggs, bacon, ham and pancakes.)
We then paid our respects to Pele, the volcano goddess.
Hiked the Desolation Trail.
And explored the lava tubes.
On Saturday morning we hit the farmer’s market.
Then drove down to Ahanalui, a natural hot spring fed by crashing ocean waves.
Instead of fireworks, we watched lava flow into the ocean at dusk.
The final morning before our flight we walked around Hilo, bought some sweets at the iresistable Sugar Coast Candy, and had easily our best meal of the trip at Cafe Pesto.
Filed under: Events, Family, Hawaii, Honolulu | Tags: hawaii book & music festival, hype, jake shimabukuro
Color me underwhelmed by the Hawaii Book & Music Festival. After all the hype around it in the local press, the event seemed sadly understaffed and underattended (from 4-6:30 on Saturday, when we were there). Vacant booths and an aura of half-heartedness characterized the experience.
But, well, I guess we were more there for Jake than the festival itself. As always, Jake put on an energetic, surprising and gracious performance. The highlight this time was an amazing rendition of Sakura (for all the Japanese fans in the crowd). As a bonus, we caught a glimpse of Jake up close and personal on his way to the portapotties prior to the show.
Taiyo’s been off training wheels for a few months now, but it was only recently that I was able to get him on camera. The process of getting him to take off on two wheels is a great metaphor for parenting. At first, I was running with him, gripping the back of his seat to keep him steady. But after a few runs I realized that my controlling grip was actually making him more unsteady. That’s when I realized, you just have to let go… And then, he started to ride, nice and smooth.
Filed under: Activities, Events, Family, Hawaii | Tags: art after dark, buzzing, fleur
On Friday evening I took the whole family out to the latest installment of Art After Dark. It seemed quite a bit more packed than the last time I went. Maybe a little too packed for the kids, but again I was blown away by the beauty of the Academy’s space, and by the buzzing energy of the event itself.
Why yes, yes I have. Just last week I saw you and your friends invade my bedroom in the middle of the night. You are a bird mite, if I am not mistaken.
We’ve had a long week. After complaining to our landlord for several weeks about the myna birds roosting above our bedroom window, he finally had his wife take action. Or rather, he had his wife have me take action, asking me to spray out the inside of the nest with poison to kill all the bird mites and drive out the remaining nestlings. Well the spray drove out the last of the baby birds, and it also drove out the mites. I awoke to discover them migrating across my body in the middle of the night, an experience I wouldn’t wish on anyone. To make a long story short, we evacuated the room, then the house, had the entire place tented and fumigated, our bodies inspected by medical professionals, and spent half the week in a hotel.
Moral of the story? In the natural kingdom, you don’t make friends with the wildlife. It’s either you or them.
Filed under: Activities, Events, Family, Hawaii, Honolulu, Kids | Tags: iolani fair, rusting tilt-a-whirls
We were able to escape the human cattle pasture that is Punahou Fair, but with not much happening on a Saturday afternoon, we decided to hit Iolani Fair and find out what these school-sponsored fundraisers were all about. Now that I’ve survived the experience, I can share it with you: rusting tilt-a-whirls, half the inflatable slide/bouncing castles on the island, and raising funds, lots of funds. I guess the kids enjoyed it, but we left considerably lighter of pocket and weary of mind.
Filed under: Activities, Family, Hawaii, Honolulu, Kids | Tags: comfortable shoes, discovery center
Hawaii Children’s Discovery Center. You can’t go wrong (assuming your kids are in the 3-8 age range). Enough themed play areas to keep them occupied for half a day. Wear comfortable shoes.
