Sholar Funeral Home

He was born March 26, 1933, in Sanford to Ralph Walter Williams and Lillie Muse Williams, who both preceded him in death.Donald lived in Wilmington and worked at W.R. Grace on Highway 421 until his retirement. He was a longtime member of Winter Park Baptist Church, having served as a deacon, handyman and jack-of-all-trades meeting the church’s needs. He was always quick with a joke or sly comment, a hardy handshake or a slap on the back, or a hug. He believed wholeheartedly in serving others and spent much of his free time helping church members and widowed ladies with their household needs.Surviving him are his wife of 62 years, Mary G. Williams; three children, Karen W. Sholar (husband, Chris), Lori A. Williams and Donald Robert “Rob” Williams Jr. (wife, Elaine), five grandchildren, Lewis A. “Trey” Venters III, Hobie L. Sholar, Colton R. Sholar, Caroline C. Williams and Ian R. Williams, all of Wilmington; and two sisters, Janice Johnson of Pittsboro and Gail Baker of Durham.He was preceded in death by his mother and father; sister, Norma Arp; and brother, Charles Russell Williams.Donald graduated from Sanford Central High School in 1952 and was a member of the state champion baseball team that same year. Shortly thereafter, he was drafted into the Army during the Korean Conflict and served one year in the U.S. and the final year in Europe.On Sept. 2, 1956, Donald married Mary Helen Gunter at Flat Springs Baptist Church near Sanford. In 1964, Donald and Mary moved to Wilmington.Family visitation will be held from 1 to 2 p.m., Tuesday, March 12, at Winter Park Baptist Church. Funeral services will follow at 2 p.m. at the church. Burial will be held in Oleander Memorial Gardens thereafter.Flowers may be sent care of Andrews Mortuary — Market Street location. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, Eastern North Carolina Chapter.Special gratitude to Liberty Homecare & Hospice Services,  particularly Contral, for their kindness and tender care of Donald...

The federal case against Murphy-Brown centers around Sholar Farm in rural Sampson County, 80 miles south of Raleigh, where eight plaintiffs living around dead-end Moon Johnson Road seek unspecified damages for years of odor, truck noise and flies. Some of those plaintiffs can trace roots on that land back a century, said their lead attorney Michael Kaeske of Dallas, who described an idyllic, family-based lifestyle interrupted by Sholar’s arrival in the mid-1980s. “That all ended when (farming magnate) Wendell Murphy decided the end of this dead-end road was a suitable location for his hogs,” Kaeske said, adding Sholar Farm has 6,000 hogs and 10 million gallons of waste in its lagoons. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Charlotte Observer #ReadLocal “That’s enough to fill 45 water towers,” he said. Over an hour-lo...