Beth Greiner Williams

My mother-in-law, Beth Greiner Williams, died peacefully in her sleep early this morning. Brother-in-law, Rob, called us at a little after 6:00 a.m. to deliver the news. She had daughter Linda and niece Mary Mitchell in with her. Rob and his family were getting some much needed sleep. Funeral arrangements are still pending. There will likely be a memorial service in St. Louis. Burial will be at West Point with her beloved husband of more than 50 years, Murray. It may not be for a little while as it takes some time to schedule the services there. Murray Jr., a West Point grad like his father, is very familiar with the ins and outs of Army red tape, so will be making all those arrangements. Would like to do something up in Maine with the family. It was such a special place for her. The only year she missed going up there since 1965 was the year that Murray was terminally ill.

Beth was a planner. In fact as early as last Tuesday she was planning dinner at a local Italian restaurant and a side trip to WalMart to pick up a few things. That was the night that her legs had given out and her left side was rendered virtually useless, but our Beth had plans! She was a wonder and a wonderful person.

Born in Riga, Latvia, she had travel in her blood. Her father went around Europe setting up YMCA's in various countries. In fact his work was not confined to just Europe, they also spent some time in China later. Beth and her sister Jean (also deceased - in 2007 from Parkinson's) were both born in Latvia. I learned only recently that English is Beth's second language. Although she was born into an American family she spoke German for much of her first years, learning English when the family moved to the States when she was 7 years old.

When the family was in China she, her sister, and mother had to be evacuated during the Japanese invasion, much like what was shown in the movie, Empire of the Sun.

The family eventually settled in White Plains, NY. Beth and sister Jean attended school there. Both went to Mt. Holyoke College in Massachusetts. Beth still attended annual reunions with some of her old college friends from Holyoke.

Beth met a handsome young redheaded man at a college dance, Murray Williams. They were married on December 27th, 1949. Murray was a fairly new West Point grad and I think their honeymoon consisted of a whole weekend before having to report to some duty station or another. Beth handled that with the grace that showed throughout her life.

The four children were born over a period of about 10 years. Murray Jr. came first in '50 or '51. A few years later John arrived in '54. Linda followed about 1957 and the baby, Rob just hit 50 years this year, so was born in 1959. Little did Beth know, but when she left the older boys in charge of the younger kids when she and Murray had a date night, Murray and John would put Linda and Rob on their shoulders and have chicken fights. They also would mount a net to her teak dining table and play table tennis on it. I would bet good money on her suspecting some shenanigans, but she could never get them to 'fess up...at least while they were young. If you were to ask me who the instigator was in all of this I'd have to say that I'm probabaly married to him. John shares his mom's sense of fun.

Beth missed her calling. She should have been a camp counselor. In fact, she likely felt that she was when the kids were young. When we went to Maine she had everything planned out...lots and lots of activities. She wanted to know what day we wanted to climb Sabbatus, Tir'em, and Jockey's Cap; what day we wanted to have the sailboat races on the lake. She planned an annual birthday party for some time during the month they spent in Maine and had lots of fun activities for that day. There was always a scavenger hunt (a ploy she worked out to send the kids running up and down the road, and up and down the hill to the water front in an attempt to tire them out for later). She always had treasures for the kids to find at the end of the scavenger hunt. The only year that failed was the year they did the parable of the burning bush and one of the uncles accidentally set fire to the barrel that had the gifts in it. (No, you light the fire AFTER the kids have found the toys!) That was probably 10 years ago and Beth still laughed when describing the long faces on the cousins as they poked through the remains of the fire looking for any kind of a trinket. The birthday celebration day also had the annual balloon pop competition as well as a pinata most years. The woman knew how to plan a good time.

The best thing about her was her loving, gentle manner and her quick laugh. She was a very happy person. Upbeat, she didn't give you long to sit and mope. There were too many things to get out and get done. A devout Christian, she lived a good, honest life with a sincere devotion to God that few have. She was not planning to die this soon, I'm sure of that. But, she had planned her entire life for the afterlife and I do hope she is reaping the rewards of that planning. I picture her reunited with Murray Sr. now. If God didn't plan for chocolate and ice cream in the afterlife, I'll just bet he's getting a suggestion from someone I know and love right this minute. Rest in peace, Beth. You were a great wife, mother and mother-in-law. I wish everyone could have known you.