Serving our Seniors Magazine January - March 2025

Chester, age 77 and Beth age 68 were a steady couple for 11 years before marrying. They were married in a small ceremony at their home, which they still live in today. That was 39 years ago. They have two children, Nathan, 36 and Nic, 29. Nathan is married to his long time soul mate, Kwesi. Seven months ago, they made Chester and Beth proud grandparents. Their grandson’s name is Zaio. The Williams’ family has always been tight knit. Even today, despite the distance of both sons living in Arizona, they see each other often and talk on the phone every day. The two have always been fun loving, hardworking and very supportive of each other. They met in 1975, after Beth and her girlfriends graduated high school, moved from Marquette, Michigan to Huron, Ohio. The plan was to, eventually, move to Sarasota, Florida. That plan derailed when Beth met Chester. “Chester was one of the first people I met after being here maybe a month or so. My car broke down and Chester gave me a ride back home.” Then he invited Beth to come and see his band perform. She accepted his invitation and never made it to Florida, as a result. As he laughed, Chester said, “She stayed because she met Chocolate Cream,” which was the name of one of his bands. I asked Beth, “What song gave you goose bumps when Chester sang? She replied, “I don’t know that it gave me goose bumps, but I liked it when he sang ‘Some Kind of Wonderful’.” Chester and Beth are like two peas in a pod. Both are equally ambitious, entrepreneurial and industrious. “We did everything, together.” In addition to Chester working full-time at GM, at various times throughout their lives, they owned a restaurant, owned three operational semi-trucks, a carpet cleaning business, flipped homes and own residential rentals. Recently, Beth was looking through Nathan’s baby book and came across a journal entry she wrote. It said: At 4 months old, you were such a good baby. Today, I took you to the apartments and you just laid there and watched me as I installed a floor. “I used to do that kind of work, all the time, when I was younger,” she said. Beth’s journey in education and career is remarkable. After obtaining her two-year degree in 1981, she balanced full-time work with continued studies, eventually earning her Doctorate in Organizational Leadership from the University of Phoenix at age 55. Reflecting on her earlier studies at Bowling Green State University (BGSU), Chester, shared, “In the winter months, I wouldn’t let her drive there by herself. I would take her there and bring her back home.” As their children grew up, Beth and Chester became enthusiastic supporters of their activities, especially sports. Their youngest son, Nic, played college basketball and Chester fondly recalled, “We were blessed. We were able to go to most of his games.” Chester takes pride in the family’s shared values, remarking, “What I’m most proud of is my boys— never did drugs, just like their Daddy. I never did any of that. In fact, they used to call me ‘The Nark.’ I didn’t need to do drugs. I just enjoyed life. We did everything together and with our kids.” Chester remembered when their boys would ask if they could go to their friend’s house for a party after a football or basketball game. “I would tell them, ‘Yeah, you can go, but you are going to be home at 12:00, midnight.’ ” “I would let them leave and after waiting 20 minutes, I would go to where they were. I would park my car about two blocks away and walk Chester and Beth Williams: 14