Goodwin Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church

Honoring Committed Men of Zion Dedicated to the Work

Rev. Floyd Williams is our Honoree!

Biography:

Reverend Dr. Floyd Williams was raised in extreme poverty in Kansas City, Missouri. His mother told him not to complain about their situation but to have faith in God and work hard. Early in his life Reverend Williams had not thought of going to college until his last week in high school when he was offered a music scholarship at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri. While studying there he became side-tracked by Mathematics and Physics thus resulting in an MS and a Ph.D from Washington University. His area of study is Homological Algebra & Lie Groups.

He has felt the sting of discrimination during his career, but has overcome and been soothed by supportive teachers, colleagues and his church family. He believes he has an obligation as a role model for helping young minorities enter science and engineering and has helped to set up programs that allow pre-college students and undergraduates to meet and talk with mathematicians, scientists and engineers. Rev. Williams held the positions of Associate Instructor at the University of California/Irvine, Instructor at (MIT) Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Rev. Williams has been an Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor, and currently is Professor Emeritus in the Mathematics and Statistics Department. He has also worked in New York, Tokyo, Russia and Brazil. He has authored 75 published works including 6 books. He is a Christian minister ordained in 1990 at his home church in Kansas City, Missouri. He is a pianist, composer former band leader performing in the U.S., France, Argentina, India, Russia and Japan.

There are quite a few well established Black mathematicians who are internationally known as leaders in their respective fields and Rev. Williams is one of them. Besides these outstanding accomplishments it is evident that Reverend Williams knows it is a great privilege to serve the Lord by serving with joy when and where he can, looking for nothing in return.

Rev. Williams’ ministry and outreach extends through decades of dedication, love and faith. He organized the Goodwin Sunday School program in 1977 serving as the superintendent the first 10 year and is still involved as a teacher there today. He was also the pianist at Goodwin for 15 years and served as the assistant/associate minister for 6 years. He has worked with men, women and youth in Greenfield, Northampton, Ludlow, Westfield and Springfield’s prison and youth detention facilities, giving follow-up ministry after their release. He is involved with seven nursing homes providing visitation, preaching, piano playing and more. The main part of Rev. Williams’s family outreach has been supporting families spiritually, emotionally and financially. He is especially involved with single parent families usually headed by women whose children lack so many resources. Other ministries Rev. Williams is involved in or supports are Food for the Poor, Christian Children’s fund, Care for the Child, Prison Fellowship and the Angel Tree, Gospel Association for the Blind, Habitat for Humanity, Jesus Film Project, Campus Crusade for Christ to name a few. His personal trips to meet missionaries around the world include trips to Argentina, Brazil and Singapore and a meeting with Mother Theresa in 1979.

Rev. Williams acts in no way contrary to that of fullest humility, thanksgiving and praise dutifully following as best he can the sterling example of Christ by being a good and faithful servant to all. Join me in honoring, thanking and celebrating Reverend Dr. Floyd L. Williams.

St. John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.

Isaiah 40:8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.