William “Todd” Williams passed away peacefully, after a long battle with cancer, at home with family by his side on June 22, 2019 at the age of 66.
Todd was born in Fallon, NV on April 5, 1953 to William “Bill” and Carol Ann Williams. The family moved to Southern CA in 1954 where Todd grew up and graduated from Ramona High School in Riverside in 1971. He loved flying and was fortunate enough to get his Private Pilot’s license when he was 16 while working at the family run Cessna Dealership, Par Flight, in Riverside.
Todd moved onto working in the remodeling industry obtaining his CA Contractor’s license and started his own business selling and installing Aluminum Patio Covers before moving to Mesa, AZ in 1983 to work with a friend in the remodeling business. He met his wife, Michelle, in 1985, in Laughlin NV. He enjoyed telling the story how “I could marry that girl” which he did in March 1987. Together they had one son, Michael Williams and two stepsons, Christopher and Brian Knox.
In 1989 Todd obtained his AZ General Contractor and Remodeling Licenses and he and Michelle started their own remodeling company, Phoenix Patio Systems, Inc. which they worked at and grew together for over 28 years, making many friends along the way, before selling and retiring in 2018.
Todd had a great sense of humor and a unique ability to make people laugh. There was rarely a quiet moment or dry eye when Todd was in the room. He was also somewhat of a foodie, enjoying time spent meal planning, cooking and grocery shopping. He loved having family over and cooking for everyone during the holidays. He also loved sporting events, especially football, and supported his children and grandchildren’s teams as well as The Arizona Cardinals (since their inception), thus making most of the family Cardinal Fans too.
Todd is preceded in death by his grandparents: Chet & Simona (Posey) Williams, Tempe, AZ, and Grant and Ruth (McDonald) Cook, of Los Angeles, CA and parents: Bill and Carol Ann (Cook) Williams of Riverside CA.
Todd was a very hard worker, a loving and devoted husband, father, grandfather, uncle and friend. He is survived by his wife Michelle of 34 years, sons, Michael Williams of Chandler, AZ, Christopher Knox (wife Tiffany) of Gilbert, AZ and Brian Knox (wife Cassandra) of Apache Junction, AZ; grandchildren, David, Ethan, Andrew, Anzlie, Landon, Ciera and Cohen Knox; siblings, Brett Williams (wife Karolyn) of Tucson, AZ and Debra Schwarting (husband Richard) of Orem UT; nieces, Megan Kniskern (husband Michael) of Phoenix, AZ, Laci Brewer (husband Gavin) of Orem, UT and nephews, Logan Williams (wife Risa) of Thousand Oaks, CA, and Ian Schwarting (wife Candice) of Vineyard, UT; father and mother in law, Richard and Rita Dillon, Mesa AZ as well as brother in law, Michael Dillon and sister in law, Barbra West (husband Vern).
Todd will be greatly missed by family and friends. No formal funeral services are scheduled. A private family memorial celebration will be announced. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be sent in Todd’s name to one of the following organizations:
Leukemia and Lymphoma Society: https://donate.lls.org
Be the Match: https://bethematch.org
Hospice of the Valley: https://hov.org
Good job Michelle! A nice tribute to Todd💕
You captured Todd perfectly. He will be missed.
That is beautiful, Michelle. Todd will always be with us, in our heart, loved, and remembered. Love you! ♥️😘
A very nice description of Todd’s life. Extremely well done. Very thoughtful. Todd will be missed. You, Michelle, are loved by all.
We remember Todd with joy. He had a big smile and gentle warm laugh. Todd was proud of his family and welcomed our daughter, Risa, into the Logan Williams family with kindness.
Michelle, you wrote a loving memorial. Thanks for sharing it .
Michelle, you have beautifully captured Todd’s legacy. My thoughts are with all of you.
Todd will be missed for his sense of humor. Well written, Michelle!
Oh Michelle, our hearts go out to you and your entire family. Todd was truly one of a kind and we feel so blessed that he touched our lives. I DO remember his (and yours) treats that you brought to get-togethers. He will be missed. Hugs and prayers my friend. Wish we could be there for you.
Todd – he was a great friend to me. He taught me about working hard and having fun.
Brett and Debra – sorry for your loss.
Mike 949-690-0434
Todd was a great guy – and very patient when i worked for him one summer in PS installing metal awnings on mobile homes. It was the most grueling work imaginable, but Todd found a way to make it fun…and keep me from quitting almost every day that summer. 🙂 I’m so sorry for your loss Debbie – and for the loss your entire family is enduring.
Michelle, our thoughts & prayers are offered on behalf of you & your family. 7 yrs ago last month, we were blessed to find Todd as the perfect person to replace our unique shaped lattice patio cover & lattice awning along the west side of our home in Gilbert. We knew when we met him what a wonderful man and businessman he was. He had such a gentle and kind personality & we were so thankful to have him help create our backyard sanctuary. I think of him quite often & have meant to contact him for the past 6 months to do additional work. I’ve left several msgs on his cell #, then the business, totally unaware of his passing. I finally did a search for the company & found your memorial for him. Our hearts are sad for your loss. Please know that he touched our lives in a wonderful way during the planning & construction of our backyard project.
May your hearts be comforted by God’s loving care. 🙏