Dolores Frances Williams, a long time fixture of the District, turned 100-years-old on June 6.
Dolores Frances Williams turned 100 on June 6. (Courtesy Photo)
“I would say she definitely was a super woman,” her daughter Betty Lorraine Briscoe told the AFRO. “She was a loving mother and still is. She has handled many trials in her life with the utmost grace. She is a vibrant and intelligent woman.”
Even though the Washington D.C. native has seen and endured loss during her lifetime, she keeps moving forward, putting one foot in front the other. “I feel fine so far,” Williams told the AFRO.” I don’t feel any different really except aches and pains.”
To remain active, Briscoe said Williams visits the Hayes Wellness Center in northeast D.C., has lunch outings and enjoys Lipton Black tea every day. According to Briscoe, Williams is independent, mobile and still lives at her home in northeast D.C., which she has owned since 1949.
Williams grew up in the Anacostia neighborhood in southeast D.C., where she attended Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School, part of the historic Black church that served Black Catholics in the area. The church is also celebrating its centennial year. In 1963, she worked as a clerk at the General Accounting Office, which is now the General Accountability Office. Williams was also a skilled seamstress. “Back then people didn’t buy a whole lot of things, that’s what they had to do to survive, “Briscoe said.
Williams had seven children: Harold, Shirley, Yvonne, Betty, Joseph, Gilbert, and Albert. To date, Yvonne, Betty and Albert are still living.
“You need patience,” Williams said. “When you have quite a few children you have to know patience, get along with them, and of course faith.”