Edward Bruce Williams Jr.

Edward Bruce Williams Jr., 82, of Raleigh, NC, went home to be with the Lord on April 11, 2023. Bruce was born in Hookerton, NC, on January 16, 1941. He graduated from Hookerton School in 1959 and earned a degree in chemistry from Campbell University.

Bruce worked for 33 years for the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, retiring in 2005 as the director of the Food & Drug Protection Division. The Constable Library at the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services was dedicated in his honor. He served in the North Carolina National Guard from 1966 to 1972.

In retirement, Bruce took up the bass guitar and taught himself to play. He soon made many wonderful friends through music. He was a founding member of the 3-piece band, The Crabtree Travelers, which took first place at the 2022 NC State Fair. His band, the River Strings, regularly performed during services at Falls Baptist Church.

Music filled Bruce’s life. He started out playing Moonlight Sonata as a young piano student. As a father, he delighted his elementary school-age daughters with tickets to see KISS in 1979. Foreigner and Def Leopard blasted in the house in the 90s. In recent years, he gained an appreciation for Bluegrass, Country and hymns.

Like the bass guitar, Bruce provided the steady background beat that was ever-present in the lives of those who love him. He always wanted to know about the weather and how our pets and his grandchildren were doing. He reveled in sharing and repeating stories about driving and wrecking a cucumber grader, learning to butcher a chicken in his parents’ country store, and getting free admission to the movie theater. Bruce was proud to be a North Carolinian and a descendant of the state’s first governor.

Bruce is survived by his wife, Thelma Darden Williams of Seattle, Washington; daughters Elizabeth (Philip) Colcord of Raleigh and Laura (Jeff) Williams-Tracy of Charlotte; stepdaughters Enslow Kable of Manhattan, NY, and Moffett (Karen) Burgess of Seattle; step-son Hartman (Tessa) Kable of Seattle; grandchildren Heywood and Ham Williams-Tracy, Darden and Gibbs Burgess, Marlo and Blake Brown, and Maxine Kable. He is survived by his beloved cat, Max. Bruce and his first wife, Elizabeth Hunt, remained good friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Edward Bruce and Ethel P. Williams, and his sister, Mary Ellen Thorp.

A celebration of Bruce’s life will be held Saturday, April 22, 2023, at 11 am Falls Baptist Church. Pastor Tom Jenkins will officiate. The family will receive friends at 10 am before the service. Internment will be at Rainbow United Methodist Church in Snow Hill, NC.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given to Falls Baptist Church, 9700 Fonville Road, Wake Forest, NC 27587.

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