On June 27, 1954, Wallace Williams was born to Wallice and Joyce (Macon) Williams in Detroit, Michigan. Baptized at an early age, Wallace exhibited leadership abilities as an active youth member of the St. Paul AME Church, where the family regularly worshipped. Wallace was educated in the Detroit public school system, attended Cass Tech, and graduated from Mumford Senior High in 1972.
He attended Oakland Community College and later, Wayne State University. He enlisted in the US Air Force in 1974 and completed basic training at MacDill AFB in Tampa, Florida. He served his country during the Vietnam War as a Security Specialist, and was honorably discharged in 1978.
After his military tour, Wallace worked briefly as a letter carrier in Montgomery, Alabama. He then returned to Detroit, changed his postal craft to mail handler and was eventually elected Union Steward of Local 307. An effective organizer, he successfully spearheaded a winning slate of mail handler candidates to office.
His career ladder took him to the national level of the US Postal Mail Handlers Union in Washington, DC as the Executive Assistant of Glenn Berrien, its newly-elected president. A strategic coalition builder, Wallace forged alliances between the Postal Mail Handlers Union, the National Association for Black Veterans, and the Democratic Party. He established the Washington, DC NABVETS office under the leadership of Thomas Wynn, the organization’s founder, and assumed the Director position.
Wallace engaged members of the Congressional Black Caucus, advocating on behalf of Black veterans, and he ultimately met with President Bill Clinton to voice his concerns and contribute to veterans’ rights legislation. Wallace subsequently joined the Democratic National Committee as a community organizer. He was an early member of the “Buffalo Soldiers” (Carol Willis’ Rag Tag Team V), an elite group of skilled political strategists that spearheaded “Get Out the Vote” efforts across the country.
He planned and implemented successful grassroots strategies for the 1996 Clinton-Gore election and the 2000 Gore-Lieberman campaign, and directed state-level races in Virginia, Missouri, Georgia, and Texas. Blessed with the gift of quick wit, Wallace met no strangers and habitually enlivened social gatherings. He relished thought-provoking conversation, and openly shared his views on politics, race, and life itself.
He enjoyed reading and fishing, and he loved playing pinochle. Wallace was preceded in death by his parents and his daughter, Faith. He leaves to cherish his memory his loving wife of 31 years, Paula Johnson Williams; sister, Renee (Rodney) Haley; sisters-in-law, Patricia (Alton) El-Amin and Rita Johnson; nieces and nephew, Janee Moore, Terri Lincoln, Tracie (Melvin) Hamilton, and Anthony (Jenaye) Lisbon of Michigan; and a host of cousins, relatives, and friends around the country.
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