A ‘true public servant’
Rep. Quentin Williams remembered for ‘optimism, passion’ at memorial
Family, friends, constituents and colleagues gathered at The First Cathedral church in Bloomfield Saturday to celebrate the life and legacy of late Rep. Quentin “Q” Williams.
Williams died in a wrong-way crash after leaving the governor’s inaugural ball on Jan. 5. Just the morning before, Williams, 39, took his oath for his third term representing the 100th district of Middletown in the Connecticut General Assembly.
State dignitaries, including legislators, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, attended the public service to honor Williams.
At the start of the memorial, State Treasurer Erick Russell read a letter addressed to Williams’ mother, Queen, and wife Carrissa from President Joe Biden.
“Queen, I write to you as someone who understands what no parent should have to experience, losing a child. It’s like losing a piece of your soul. Carissa, I also know the pain of grieving a spouse, your partner, inspiration, and world,” Biden wrote.
Biden remembered Williams as a “trailblazer” and a “true public servant” who “fought hard to do right by the people he loved.”
“I know that Quintin’s optimism and passion brought joy to so many and that his life will always shine brightly through you and all the lives he touched,” Biden added. “It will take time, but I promise you the day will come when Quentin’s memory will bring a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye.”
Williams’ “Auntie,” Anita Ford Saunders,
read a corresponding note from Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Quentin was an incredible public servant and passionate advocate for civil rights as the first Black state representative for the city of Middletown. Quentin’s tireless fight for a more equitable future for his community and our nation is a legacy that will continue to inspire the next generation of leaders,” Harris wrote.
“I am grateful for Quentin’s commitment to racial justice and gender equity,” she added. “It’s clear that this compassionate heart and joyous spirit were gifts to those whose lives he touched and that he will be remembered for the light he brought to this world.”
Williams’ light was a theme that radiated throughout Saturday’s service.
There were heartfelt stories of a viva
cious personality, infectious smile and flashy style.
One mourner, Stephany Smith, the former president of the Stamford Charter School for Excellence, which Williams helped launch, joked that the late representative is “putting up a fit” with God over heaven’s all white robes.
Others spoke of Williams as a man of conviction who influenced so many.
State Sen. Patricia Billie Miller, the chair of the Connecticut Black and Puerto Rican Caucus, said she learned so much from Williams.
“Q taught me a lot. He taught me how to stand up for what was right,” she said. “And I’ve done that, but he made me look deeper to say that ‘You have to take a stand’ because sometimes politicians, we like to sit on the fence. Q taught me there are certain things that I can’t sit on the fence [for] because as the leader and as the Black leader. I had a responsibility to take a stand,”
Bysiewicz spoke of Williams’ driving forces, his mother and wife, and echoed the endless pride he felt for them.
Bysiewicz also spoke of Williams’ dedication to budding leaders.
“He knew he was a role model and he was so proud of that. He was proud to be the first Black legislator elected from the hundredth district,” Bysiewicz said.
“He knew that young people were watching him. They were listening to everything he said and they were watching what he did,” she added. “If you ever saw him in Middletown High School speaking to students, he was two feet off the ground because he was so proud to be there to show those students they could be a legislator or a congressman or president someday, too, just like him.”
Bysiewicz urged listeners to honor Williams’ legacy by encouraging women to run for office and bringing youth into the political fold.
State Sen. Mae Flexer encouraged others to take up the causes Williams championed.
“In our grief, some of us have wondered how to honor Quentin, how to keep a piece of him with us and continue his legacy. How can we try to be better by being more like him? By being more welcoming to others by fighting for real equity and opportunity in housing, by speaking truths to power, by strengthening the rights of workers, by demanding real justice for communities that are always left behind, by never missing an opportunity to travel, by rebuilding our main streets and by always fully embracing the opportunity to laugh,” Flexer said.
Interspersed between speakers, two jumbo screens displayed photos and footage of Williams on the house floor, at press conferences and in his community.
In one video Williams stood at a podium. Through the clip, he spoke to those attending his memorial just as much as he spoke to the crowd on film when he asked his audience “To choose to listen, to choose to love, to choose to believe.”
“He knew he was a role model and he was so proud of that. He was proud to be the first Black legislator elected from the hundredth district.”
— Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz