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FUNERAL SERVICE FOR CURTIS WILLIAMS The sunny, warm weather contrasted sharply to that dark, cold, rainy day in Palo Alto, some 19 months ago when C-Dub, as he was called by his fellow players, suffered his tragic injury. That injury, to the C2 vertebrae, left him paralyzed from the neck down and occurred as a result of a head-to-head collision with Stanford's Kerry Carter on October 28, 2000. Williams passed away on May 6, some nineteen months later.
"It's critical that Curtis is not forgotten," Neuheisel said. "He's meant a great deal not only because he was a great player and a great friend but because of the way he fought and the way he dealt with maybe the cruelest card that can be dealt."
The service began with pictures of Curtis beginning with
his childhood and through the period following his injury.
These were shown on large screens on both sides of the church. Pastor Gossenberger said that Curtis lived for football,
loved kids, loved life and that this service was a tribute to Curtis.
He thanked the representatives from the University of Washington for
coming. He mentioned the family,
the parents, Viola and Donny Williams, and the daughter of Curtis, Kimberly
Jordan Williams. David Williams, a brother of Curtis, spoke and thanked
everyone for being there to celebrate the new life for Curtis and praised him
for a job well done. Another brother, James, mentioned all the memories he
holds so dear. He told a story
about Curtis when he was seven years old.
They had been practicing baseball on a dirt field near their home.
At first Curtis practiced catching grounders and got so good, they
switched to catching pop flies.
James increased the height of the thrown balls, until one hit Curtis on the the forehead. Afterwards, they walked to a near-by drive-in to get some ice cream, and
with a knot on his forehead, "Curtis looked like a baby unicorn,"
David said.
On the way, Curtis said, “I don’t like those high ones.”
But on the way home after the ice cream, he said, “Tomorrow I’ll
catch those high ones.” And the
next day, he did. James said that recently, he asked Curtis what he was thinking about. Curtis replied, “I’m thinking about football. I’m going to play again. God wants me to play again.” James said, “I believe he is playing again now.”
He said he learned a lot from Curtis
and that one of God’s angels has been called home. A video showing highlights of his football career at Washington was shown, accompanied by the song “I Hope You Never Lose Your Sense of Wonder.” The video finished with the U of W scoreboard flashing, C- DUB.
After the graveside service, a luncheon was held at the Northwest Church, where those in attendance were able to pay their condolences to members of the Williams' family.
--------- Curtis Williams is survived by his parents, Donnie and
Viola, and seven siblings, David, Donna, Paul, James, Pat, Robert and William. He graduated from Bullard High School in Fresno, California and was in his Senior year at Washington when the head-to-head collision occurred at Stanford; the injury which involved the C2 vertebra left him paralyzed and unable to breathe on his own. After three months of rehabilitation therapy at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Williams moved in with his brother, David, in Fresno on February 15, 2001. Williams required 24-hour nursing care, which took place at his home, as provided by the NCAA and its insurance company, Mutual of Omaha. Coming out of high school, Williams was rated as one of the top running backs in the west by Blue chip illustrated. He was selected to the Tacoma News Tribune's "Western 100" team and All-State squad. He scored 31 touchdowns as a senior, having rushed for 11 touchdowns of at least 50 yards or more, while rushing for 1400 yards. As a senior, he totaled over 2,100 all-purpose yards as a running back and receiver and was the voted the league's most valuable player. Williams was a member of the Husky secondary at Washington and played strong safety. During the 2000 season, in six of Williams’ eight games, Husky opponents threw for less than 215 yards. He had two sacks on the season. Teamed with Hakim Akbar at safety, their tight coverage helped Washington rank in the top half of the Pac-10 in sacks in 2000, a year after finishing last in that category.
A
memorial service
in Seattle will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Edmundson Pavilion. CURTIS EARL WILLIAMS, Number 25, May 4, 1978--May 6, 2002
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Funeral services were held for Curtis Earl Williams at the Northwest Church in Fresno, California at 10 AM,
Pastor Scott Gossenberger presiding. Approximately 600 people were in
attendance. 
A
number of representatives from the University of Washington were in attendance.
Six coaches attended the service, including head coach Rick Neuheisel (pictured to the left as he
answered questions from media representatives) and assistant coaches Keith
Gilbertson, and Bobby Hauck. Athletic director Barbara Hedges and former head
coach Jim Lambright also attended the
service. 
Graveside
services were held at the Clovis District Cemetery, Clovis, California. Pastor
Gossenberger recited the 23rd Psalm, those in attendance sang "Amazing
Grace," and the pastor read a poem entitled, "If You Could See Where
I Have Gone." At the end of the service, Coach Neuheisel presented
Williams' jersey (number 25), which had been draped across the casket, to
Curtis' parents, Donny and Viola. 
As
C-Dub, number 25, reaches the top of the long stairway that leads to heaven, he'll smile down from his lofty place in Husky history.
During his last days on earth, his wide smile--his trademark--radiated the
message that he loved us all, including each and every Husky, as well as his
family and friends. Somehow, I always sensed that during his last days on earth
our inspirational warrior knew more than he was privy to tell. God bless him.
At Washington, he pursued a degree in American ethnic
studies. Just credits short of a degree, he had planned to take correspondence
courses from his brother's home using a voice actuated computer.