Harold Lamar Williamson Sr.

Harold Lamar Williamson Sr. a longtime resident of Athens, Georgia passed away peacefully in his sleep on to God’s eternal kingdom on Easter Sunday, April 12, 2020. He was born 94 years ago in Cordele, Georgia, the son of his beloved parents, Felix Drewry and Ida Bryan Williamson. His father died when he was just a young boy and he was raised on their family farm along with his six siblings by their remarkable and loving mother. He is descended from seven generations of the Williamson family in Georgia, including the Solomon Williamson family in South Georgia of Oak Park. He learned on the family farm the values of family and friends, developed a deep faith in Christ, learned the value of hard work and a love for his country. When World War II began he and each of his brave brothers joined different branches of the armed services and left for battle. They were spread out in Europe and the Pacific. His brother “F.D.” was a squad commander in the 8th Air Force in England and he shot down 5 planes in one day and a total of 13 becoming an Ace Pilot in his Thunderbolt plane named “Georgia Peach”. He died in a plane crash in 1947. His brother Rudolph who was in the Army Air Corps in the Pacific was lost in action over the Admiralty Islands and was never found. As the youngest, Harold was so proud of his brothers that he could not wait to join them in their fight for freedom. Harold joined the Army and was a Lieutenant in the 9th Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion, Company B. He fought bravely in France and then in one of the greatest conflicts of the war in the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium. Then he fought in Germany and went on to be part of the liberation of Czechoslovakia. That liberation he would often speak of as one of the greatest and most important events in his life.