(NOTE: I wrote this for SPARK magazine earlier in 2018.)
LARRY WILLIAMS: He's here to serve
By Tom Gillispie
Larry Williams retired 19 years ago at age 56, and he's worked his "retirement" job, mayor of Rural Hall, longer than most people stay in a single job.
Williams was originally from Gastonia, graduating from Ashley High School in 1960. He earned a civil engineering degree from N.C. State and went to work for the state in traffic engineering and highway safety. Sometimes he helped set up the roads into and out of Charlotte Motor Speedway without ever attending a race.
"I think I got satisfaction from knowing I was doing something to help improve roads and possibly save lives," he says.
Williams and his wife Billie moved to Rural Hall in 1966, and he became a member of the town council in 1979. Williams ran for mayor in 1991 because "people asked me to; it was my civic duty."
The mayor doesn't keep regular office hours in the town hall at 423 Bethania-Rural Hall Road; he goes in when he needs to. He says his hours vary, and he can't give a ballpark number of hours he works per week.
"I probably do more work from home, preparing for meetings," he said.
He was asked if Billie enjoys him being mayor.
“She approves,” he said. “She supports me and encourages me in performing my civic duty, and I enjoy meeting, knowing and serving people.”
No one has run against Williams for mayor, but he says he doesn’t take the elections for granted.
Williams serves as chairman of the Winston-Salem Urban Area Transportation Advisory Committee and serves on the PART (Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation) Board of Trustees. He and Billie volunteer in the Cancer Center at Forsyth Medical Center.
He says he has no big town projects in the works, although they're planning to put in more sidewalks. Asked if there are any headaches being mayor, he said that "I don't look at them as headaches, but as a problem I'm trying to resolve. It's been an honor and a privilege to be the mayor of Rural Hall, and a pleasure."
BROTHER BUSH
You'll notice the accompanying photo of Williams and George W. Bush. People often tell him he looks a bit like the former president — Williams doesn't see it. When Bush flew into Piedmont Triad International Airport several years ago, the mayor greeted him at Air Force One.
He says that he’s not sure that Bush saw the resemblance, but the president did the usual thing and leaned in for a photo by a White House photographer. Williams later got a copy of the photo in the mail, and he keeps it on his wall.
FORTUNATE AND BLESSED
When asked how long he'll be mayor, he wasn't sure.
"My philosophy is I'll never say never," he said, "so I don't know."
Williams, a member of the Rural Hall Moravian Church, is still physically active. He runs at Covington Park and has logged in more than 10,000 miles. He still runs in the Town’s annual 10K race held in October; the money goes to the local elementary school.
"I don't consider age. I feel very fortunate and blessed," he said. "My mom was 95 when she died, and my dad was 92. I hope it's in the genes."
(NOTE: Williams has since retired after a 28-year run as mayor.)
(NOTE: Williams has since retired after a 28-year run as mayor.)
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