SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – Glendon J. Williams of Springfield died on May 14, 2022 at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative and Hospice Care in Lebanon, N.H. following a brief illness. He was 77.
Glen was the son of the late Wendell and Alberta (Adams) Williams. He was born June 3, 1944, in Springfield. He attended Springfield schools before enrolling in and graduating from what was then Kutztown State College, now Kutztown University, in Kutztown, Pa. He earned a bachelor’s degree in art education in 1966 and, in 1982, a master’s degree in art education from Southeastern Massachusetts University, now University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth.
After college, from 1967–1969, Glen was in the Peace Corps and served in Venezuela, traveling extensively through South America, Haiti, and Jamaica. Following, he became a teacher, spending his career as an art teacher in Auburn, Mass. schools before retiring in 1999. In addition to instructing, Glen was an accomplished artist, skilled in ceramics. He exhibited his work, some of which included intricate clay and porcelain sculpture.
He enjoyed a diversity of interests, including taking care of a pet bird, Molly, and his pet shelty dogs, Shelly and then Dillon. He was a master gardener, volunteered at the local soup kitchen, and was involved in the Unitarian Universalist Church in Springfield. His gardening at his Dewey Street home drew community attention, and he became an amateur botanist, experimenting with, hybridizing, and displaying varietals of Hosta. Eventually, his Hosta collection grew to more than 2,000, one of the largest in New England. He was a member of the American Hosta Society (AHS), and cartoons he drew were published in the AHS journals. He took part in AHS’ First Look, a hybrid competition.
Glen wrote about these interests, local, and national issues in a column for the Springfield Reporter.
Glen was the youngest of three brothers. Gene H. Williams and Gayland M. Williams both predeceased him. He is survived by a sister-in-law, Mary Williams, of Saxtons River, Vt., and six nieces and nephews: Karen Hamner of Lompoc, Calif., Dianne Kashiwabara of Bedford, N.H., Howard Williams of Springfield, Vt., Andrew Williams of Claremont, N.H., Darsanne Williams of Missouri City, Texas, and Terrence Williams of Amherst, N.H. Also, several grand-nieces and grand-nephews.
The family is planning a gathering to celebrate Glen’s life this summer.