Garin Richard Williams, 50, died on November 19, 2025. He was born on January 4, 1975, in Fort Scott, the oldest child and only son of Steve and Marci Williams—parents whose steady love shaped him, grounded him, and was returned to them a thousandfold. From an early age, they nurtured in him a deep devotion to family, a lifelong passion for sports, and a profound love for his heritage. He cherished the stories, the family history, and the land that tied generations together, holding those connections close throughout his life.
Garin grew up just north of Redfield, where his childhood was spent with a cowboy hat and a six-shooter, even sneaking his gun in his boot on the first day of kindergarten. After the West was won, he graduated to a dirt bike, pedaling hundreds of miles with his cousins and sister between their houses and their grandparents’—only a mile apart.
He was (at first) a reluctant sibling—he had his heart set on brothers—but quickly became an adoring and protective big brother to his two little sisters, Jayci and Kelci. He loved spending time with them, inventing new “Williams games” like Stuffed Animal Carry and Deck Ball, or refusing to let them beat him in checkers or, frankly, any other game on the planet. When he left for college, he regularly sent long letters and cards for every occasion to his family, and once even hid in a cardboard box to surprise Kelci after sneaking home from Sterling. His family never had to wonder if he loved them; he told them often and without hesitation.
Garin attended school at Uniontown from kindergarten through graduation with the class of 1993. Being mischievous enough to keep his friends laughing, yet mindful that his Grandma Carol was the grade school secretary, required a delicate balance.
A gifted athlete, Garin played football, basketball, and track. Though small in stature, he ran the football with fearless intensity, lowering his head to fight for one more yard. His real legend, however, was on the track. In grade school and junior high, he competed in AAU and the Hershey Track program, qualifying for three national track meets. He earned numerous state and regional championships, along with two third-place medals and one fourth-place medal at the national level. Forty years later, he still holds state and regional AAU records.
In high school, he won three individual state championships and still holds four school records—including all three distance events. Following graduation, he attended Pittsburg State University for one year, running track and cross country. He transferred to Sterling College in 1994 to follow his love of football. He continued to wear #20, just like his dad before him and his sisters after him, graduating in 1998 with a degree in History Education.
Garin married Treva Russell on December 20, 1997. They later divorced.
Garin’s greatest joy in life was being a father to his two children, Shayd and Finean. In 1998 Garin and his family moved to Lexington, Kentucky, returning to Kansas in 2001 so he could take a teaching job.
He taught high school history and was the head football and track coach at Crest High School for two years. In 2003, Garin and Treva moved to Fort Scott, where Garin stepped into the role he was truly made for – a stay-at-home dad and homeschool teacher to Shayd and Fin. He poured his whole heart into raising them and they were the center of his world. He was immensely proud of them and loved them fiercely. The family moved to Charleston, South Carolina in 2012 and Garin returned home to Kansas in 2022.
Garin was also a beloved uncle to six nephews – all of whom considered him the funniest person who ever lived. Garin had a rare gift for humor, turning any situation- no matter how ordinary-into something worth laughing about. People who knew him remember the same thing: if you were with Garin, you were laughing.
Garin grew up in the First Missionary Baptist Church, where he was baptized at the age of 8 by Reverend Deane Endicott. He was later a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Fort Scott, where he was part of the youth group ministry. The foundation laid in his childhood never left him. We trust in the God who knew him fully, loved him completely, and held him even on the days when Garin felt far away.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Jack and Doris Williams and Don and Carol Mix. He especially loved his grandmothers—visiting them often, sending them cards and handwritten letters, going with them to concerts, plays, and movies, and spending plenty of time playing card games. He delighted in making them laugh: one summer he even carried out a months-long practical joke involving a stuffed animal gorilla that Grandma Doris found endlessly funny. And when Grandma Carol decided the squirrels had declared war on her birdhouses, she hired Garin as her squirrel bounty hunter, paying him ten dollars a squirrel. He carried out the job with enthusiasm and capped it off by taping a stuffed animal squirrel to her birdhouse just to get one more laugh. It was classic Garin—equal parts helpful, mischievous, and full of heart.
Garin is survived by his parents, Steve and Marci Williams; his children, Shayd Williams and Finean Williams; his sisters, Jayci (Chad) Cosens and Kelci Ebrecht; his nephews, Dryden and Cal Cosens, Kreedyn Smith, and Colby, Cameron, and Boden Ebrecht. He is also survived by numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and friends who cherished him.
Garin leaves us with a thousand memories that make us smile through our tears. His love and humor will live on in the family who adored him.
Private family services were held Tuesday. Memorials are suggested to the Uniontown First Missionary Baptist Church Summer Youth Camp or Ft. Scott’s Community Christian Church Playground Fund and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
