Tom just wanted to say the following: “I had a great ride, a great and loving wife for 62-plus years who is the best person I have ever known, a great family and great friends, and I would do most of it all over again except the very last years, as they largely sucked due to health problems and the infirmities of Old Age.”
Tom Williams of Santa Barbara, California, and Prescott, Arizona, was born June 18, 1939 and died Sept. 7, 2026.
Tom’s early and later years were spent in the South Coast region of Santa Barbara County.
He was a fourth-generation member of a Santa Barbara family. He grew up in Goleta, where he spent much time on the family ranch on La Patera Lane, the site of the Daniel Hill Adobe, which was ranched in order by his great grandfather George M. Williams; his grandfather James G. Williams; and his father Thomas L. Williams.
During Tom’s adolescence he attended Goleta Union School, Santa Barbara Junior High, Santa Ynez High, and New Mexico Military Institute.
After high school Tom worked for the U.S. Forestry Service on a tanker crew in Los Padres National Forest until he was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he was posted to the 2nd Engineer Group in the Republic of South Korea in security and communications.
After his service Tom was in involved in the family ranching and wildlife management business. He then attended and graduated from Santa Barbara City College, received a B.A., from San Diego State University and a Juris Doctor from the University of San Diego.
During law school Tom worked part-time at Cabrillo Pacific Law School. After graduation, he became the assistant dean and a professor at the law school.
In 1974, he returned to Santa Barbara and started the California Law Institute, (now Santa Barbara College of Law). While at the institute, he was the dean and a professor of law in courses in wills, trusts and estates.
After his time at the Law Institute, Tom entered the practice of law with an emphasis on estate planning and business law. He also kept his hand in teaching at Santa Barbara City College where he was an instructor in courses on business law.
He later served as the corporate counsel for Lite Composite Systems, Inc., and for the Collegiate Licensing Company, Inc. He was also a trustee for the Santa Barbara for Historic Preservation.
Tom loved the outdoors, bird watching, fly fishing, tennis and hunting. He also loved teaching. He had a Lifetime California Community College Credential as an instructor, supervisor and chief administrative officer.
He was committed to the conservation and intelligent utilization of our natural resources. He would rather fly fish than almost anything.
Tom is pre-deceased by his father Tom Sr.; mother Elise C. Anderson; step-mother Kathleen; brother-in-law Chuck Sizemore; brothers Stephen and Gary Williams; son Michael Williams; and niece Holly Williams.
He is survived by his incredible and wonderful wife Mary Anne Sizemore Williams; granddaughter Mallory; sisters-in-law Lynn Williams and Connie Sizemore; and many nephews, nieces and cousins, as well as his fly fishing partners Steve Brown, Phil Lee and Jim Hill.
Tom always said his life was a great ride.
No services are planned.