Paul Williams was born in Brooklyn, New York. Since he had no children of his own, not much is known of his early life. The first contact with both him and his wife, Dollie, was when she was in training for the nursing course at the White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles. Paul was an accountant. He had a very friendly way about him which attracted the young children and he always had a group of them around him. When one missionary son was asked what he remembered about Paul, his answer came quickly, “His red hair and little mustache, and all the good times we had when he came visiting our home in Hong Kong.”
After Dollie’s graduation they responded to the call of the Seventh-day Adventist Mission Board to go to China. It so happened that they were among the group of 21 missionaries who were sent out together on the S.S. Nile to the Far East. Upon arriving in Hong Kong they remained a few days for indoctrination and counsel. Due to the fact that Dr. Law Keem had just passed away, help was needed greatly in the hospital at Nanning, Kwangsi Province. Dr. R.A. Falconer and his wife also accompanied them to Nanning to be the new medical director of the hospital and the ladies, who directed the nursing service.
The trip up the river was a dangerous one as China at that time was in the midst of civil war. The armies who lost the battles scattered over the country side and became bandits or mountaineer lords. Many a boat on the river was shot at and the passengers robbed of everything they possessed. One of the missionaries met with a similar experience. He had his heavy fur lined coat removed, then his shirt and suit and shoes all stripped and he was left in the cold of winter, with only his stockings and under-clothing on the there was no heat on the boat. A German missionary on the same boat was shot in his head and the Adventist missionary helped him until the boat arrived back in Canton and he could be taken to the hospital.
So these political conditions were not welcomed by the new recruits. But they put their trust in God and made the long journey of hundreds of miles into the Kwangsi Province successfully.
Paul became the treasurer of the Kwangsi Mission and PV. Thomas became the superintendent.
It was the time of the annual South China Union Mission meetings when the delegates came to Canton. The Williamses and other workers on the compound in Nanning were fearful of making the trip down the coast river to Canton. They all gathered around a table in their home and prayed that God would especially guide them as to whether they should go or stay. Then they decided to cast lots. They made many small cards with the words “stay” written on them and rolled them up and put them in a bowl. Then they made only 3 cards with the word “go” written on them and mixed these with the others in the bowl. Joining hands they again prayed for guidance.
Then three people drew three cards from the bowl, one for each family, and each one drew the card that had the word “go” written on it. Remember how thrilling the story was when I heard them tell it and what an impression it made on all the folk gathered at the meeting!
During the years 1926 – 1927 the American Consulate ordered all missionaries in Kwangsi and Kwangtung Provinces to go down to Hong Kong for safety. Some of the folk went back to the U.S. if their furloughs were due. Florence Nagel tells of a big birthday gathering on October 16, 1926 on her 16thbirthday. There was a large crowd of missionaries who had come down from the interior of South China. Her birthday fell on the Sabbath day. All day Sabbath, not a person, not even her mother had wished her a “Happy Birthday.” After church and dinner Paul Williams suggested they all go down to the cemetery in Happy Valley and visit the graves of the pioneers who were buried there. These were Abram La Rue, Miss Gertrude Thompson, and Mrs. Clara Folconer, wife of Dr. Roy A. Falconer, who died on March 6, 1921, shortly after they arrived in Nanning, Kwangsi, at the age of 26 years at the time of child birth.
The group gathered for a dedication service and sundown worship by the beautiful fountain at the foot of the hillside below the graves. It was a very impressive time as they thought of the sacrifice those dear ones had paid. As soon as the sun had set, Paul lead out in the song, “Happy Birthday to Florence” and said, “Now we are all going up to Blue Bird’s Café and have Eskimo Pies to celebrate. The ice cream bars were something that many of the young folk had never eaten before, as these had just recently been introduced in Hong Kong.
The next day a big birthday dinner was served in the home of Elder C.C. Morris, the South China Union Superintendent.
Paul and Dollie made Hong Kong their home for many years. He was the Union treasurer from 1931-1933, 1936-1937, and 1939-1941, at the time W.P. Bradley was acting president of the Far Eastern Division with headquarters in Singapore. Paul and Dollie moved again, this time to be the Far Eastern Division Treasurer. They were there in Singapore until the Japanese bombed the country at the beginning of World War II with Japan. They were successful in leaving the city before it was captured.
Paul Williams was in charge of the transportation department for the General Conference in the San Francisco office until his retirement.He and Dollie built a lovely home on the hillside looking down over the Sonora Adventist Hospital, in Sonora, California.It was again a happy occasion when on their 50thwedding anniversary many of the fellow co-workers of the South China Union Mission met to celebrate the happy occasion with them.Paul spent 35 years in the Orient.What a glorious time it will be when all the saints of China gather in our Father’s Home.Paul and Dollie will again say, “It was a blessing to be a missionary to China.”