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the deep desire for fairness and justice [we have] in our efforts to increase access to trails and active transportation,” affirmed Kate Kraft, former executive director of America Walks, who joined RTC’s board shortly after Williams. Kevin Mills, RTC’s vice president of policy, knew Williams since their days of working together at the Environmental Defense Fund in the early 1990s. Mills remembers Williams’ deep understanding of RTC’s trail advocacy work and its strategic intersections with his environmental justice work in Detroit. “He would pick up on RTC’s latest objectives—such as innovative ways to fund trails or assess trail connectivity—and identify opportunities to advance them, sharing his network of contacts and pounding the pavement to secure support,” said Mills. He continued, “He was also a force to be reckoned with in the boardroom. He would listen carefully to everyone’s opinions and then weigh in with a thoughtful position that
blended respect for his peers with a challenge for RTC to strive to be as impactful as possible, because he believed—and led others to believe—that it was essential for the good of the world that we be our best selves.” Williams’ colleagues note that while he was chair, he led the RTC board and its business strategies with a strong sense of integrity, and championed impactful communications and marketing initiatives that helped raise RTC’s visibility. His thought leadership is credited as being pivotal to the launch of RTC’s TrailNation ™ initiative, which aims to accelerate trail network development nationwide, and today contains a portfolio of nine local and regional trail network projects spanning more than 10,000 miles. His legacy lives on through the local and national organizations he helped shape and mold, and the friends and colleagues he touched along the way—who remember his indelible mark on the trails and environmental movements, and the endless kindness and support he emanated on a daily basis.
PHOTOS: Opposite page, from left: Guy O. Williams | Courtesy Guy O. Williams; Williams at the 2018 TrailNation Summit in Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Courtesy Front Room Photography. This page, from left: Williams and colleagues on the Hank Aaron State Trail in Milwaukee | Courtesy Rails to Conservancy; Williams on a bike at an RTC board meeting | Brandi Horton. Virginia H. Williams Endowment Fund (rtc.li/williams-fund), an environmental justice organization of your choice, or a local AA chapter in honor of Williams’ quiet but powerful commitment to recovery and second chances. “[He] was good at building consensus, and always had a smile on his face,” said Laughlin. “Whatever his role at any given time, he always approached the work with passion, purpose, generosity and empathy,” Mills stated. “Guy left his mark on many people, and RTC is really lucky that he was part of making us who we are today,” said Kraft. In lieu of flowers, Williams’ family suggests that donations be made to the Charles R. “Pop” and
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