C.J. “Jim” Williams of Red Deer passed away on December 20, 2019 at the age of 69 years. (Supplied)

By Sheldon Spackman

"Remarkable Man"

Red Deer shooting victim remembered as loving, caring family man

Dec 27, 2019 | 2:26 PM

The widow of a Red Deer man fatally shot outside the city’s south end Walmart last week says she and her family are still trying to come to grips with his loss.

Roxine Williams says the senseless tragedy has left her family in a state of shock.

“None of us have really processed it yet, it seems surreal,” she said Friday. “I still expect him to walk through the door, my dog still expects him to walk through the door. My kids are just devastated, my grandchildren are devastated, his family is devastated.”

Williams says she and husband Jim were grocery shopping on the fateful night of Dec. 20 while they were preparing for upcoming Christmas celebrations.

“We were having lots of fun that day,” recalls Williams. “We grocery shopped for my mom and we grocery shopped for ourselves. He and I talked about coming home and finish decorating the Christmas tree, which still isn’t done.”

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Williams say the only reason they stopped at Walmart was for Jim to buy deodorant.

“I said to Jim, just run in and get your deodorant and then we’ll go home,” says Williams. “I was sitting in the car and reading my book and he came back and knocked on the window, so I unlocked the door and he opened it and then he slammed it shut and said stay there!”

At that point, Williams saw her husband backing towards their vehicle’s mirror, with another man in a hoodie and black cloth covering the bottom half of his face – carrying a gun.

“I heard a pop and then Jim was backing up and I heard another pop,” says Williams. “Then the guy took off running and Jim took off after him and that’s the last I saw of my husband.”

Roxine describes Jim as a loving, caring, law abiding family man.

“He loved his family unconditionally,” says Williams. “He always had a smile on his face, he was very upbeat. He was always kind of look at what you’ve got, not at what you don’t have.”

Williams says Jim overcame significant obstacles in his life, including surviving a 1991 propane explosion that put him in a coma for three months and burnt over 84 per cent of his body.

“When he got burnt, he was a truck driver, but after he was burnt, he was retired because of fourth level, third degree burns, which are the worst you can get,” she explains. “But he had come through that, and we had a good life.”

An avid target shooter himself, Williams says Jim always fought for gun laws.

“He loved to go shoot his targets, he loved to go camping, he loved his grandchildren unconditionally, his children unconditionally,” she says. “He would take them camping anytime. We spent so much time camping with our grandchildren because he just loved it.”

Williams admits the sudden loss of her husband hit her hard on Christmas Day.

“My husband loved to take my picture first thing Christmas morning with my hair a mess, and me staggering around making a turkey,” laughs Williams. “He wasn’t here to do that, there was nobody here.”

Roxine says Jim always put the needs of others first.

“Anybody that knew him, knew he was a good guy. I could have been out there with him, and he told me to stay in the car, so I did. He saved my life. Always looking out for others, that was just him.”

C.J. “Jim” Williams is lovingly remembered by his wife Roxine, son Bill, daughter Dallas, three grandchildren, three great grandchildren, his mother Betty, sister Donna and brother David.

A service to honor Jim’s life will be held on Saturday, January 4.

For those wishing to do so, memorial donations may be made to the STARS Foundation Box 570, 1441 – Aviation Park NE, Calgary AB T2E 8M7, the Central Alberta Humane Society, 4505 – 77 St. Red Deer AB T4P 2J1 or to the Edmonton Firefighters Burn Treatment Society, Suite #1, 7024 101 Ave. NW, Edmonton AB T6A 0H7.

Condolences to Jim’s family may be emailed to meaningful@telus.net.