Reflections on a Life Well Lived

Dr. Kamalee Higgs Williams grew up in an era when it was neither common or practical for a Black woman to achieve the level of status or the range of experiences she achieved. But that was quintessentially Kamalee. When faced with social, economic, or racial barriers, she would study the situation – her brilliant mind calculating a strategic approach to overcoming anything and anyone that stood in the way of her aspirations. She formulated ambitious goals very early in life.

Born in Ritta, Florida, to Isadora and Nathaniel Higgs, she was introduced to the cruelty of the Jim Crow south as a toddler. Her mother, pregnant with her little brother, encountered complications during childbirth. With too few hospitals that treated Black women, Isadora was relegated to giving birth at home with a doula. Unfortunately, the complications were beyond the scope of a doula with no formal medical training and proved fatal to Isadora - leaving Kamalee to grow up during the worst of the depression years without a mother. It was during this period she determined to work in the healthcare field. She hoped to acquire the formal training to save lives that her mother’s doula had unfortunately lacked.

During her final year at Oakwood College, she encountered another barrier of the Jim Crow era. Colleges and universities limited the number of Black and Brown students who could be admitted to professional training programs. Glendale Sanitarium and Hospital, School of Nursing was no exception. They would only admit two Black students a year. Undaunted, Kamalee determined to grasp one of those spots. The competition would be fierce, naturally, but that did not deter her. She persevered and was successfully admitted to the program on her first try.

Other degrees, accolades and awards would follow at Loma Linda University, UCLA, Rio Hondo Community College, Compton Community College and United States International University. She would go on to serve as a university professor of nursing and attain a doctorate degree while working full time and raising three children. To complete her doctorate degree, she worked full time before driving a hundred miles each way to attend her graduate courses. Determined and tenacious, the little girl who so wanted to be the medical professional her mother needed, became the inspiration for generations of aspiring nurses to care for others with empathy, compassion, and care, regardless of their social and economic status. Her mother would have been proud.

Dr. Williams was pronounced for scrutinizing social, cultural, economic, or racial barriers and breaking them down brick by brick. The word, “No” was merely a suggestion if it meant denial to access or opportunity. “Can’t” wasn’t in her vocabulary. She was a tenacious activist – breaking barriers in her own quiet, strategic way.

Despite the many challenges she faced as a brilliant Black intellectual, Kamalee remained kind, loving, accepting, and encouraging to every soul she met. Although she never knew her mother well, people who knew Isadora would remind Kamalee what a kind and loving spirit her mother possessed. She determined early that she would meet her mother in heaven and become personally acquainted. Toward that end, she accepted Christ and was baptized by Elder Abney in West Palm Beach, Florida. She also served faithfully at Mt. Olivet Church in Camden, New Jersey, Tamarind Avenue Church in Compton, California, Valley Fellowship Church in Rialto, California, and Raleigh Seventh Day Adventist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina.

To know Kamalee was to love her. She was a thoughtful, friendly, compassionate, person who possessed sensitivity to the needs of others. Quiet, kind, and inspirational to her patients, students, friends, and family, she was indeed a friend who never forgot what true friendship really meant. If she had it, she would share it. If you needed it, she would give it to you. If she could help, she would not hesitate. She gave freely. She gave genuinely. She embodied what it means to be a child of God. Like Christ, she simply loved and gave.

During her retirement she traveled the world – Europe, Africa, Russia, and Asia – marveling at diverse cultures, and volunteering her time, effort, and knowledge to support the work of other professionals across the globe. She will be remembered for her quiet demeanor, hearty laughter, keen sense of humor and abundant sense of generosity to share with others – whether by her means or her time.

A brilliant woman with keen insight, she was a valued source for advice and counsel to those who sought her. Isadora will be impressed when she meets her in heaven. Until then, they both leave a legacy of kindness, love, and inspiration that is unmatched. Rest well, Kamalee. You have earned your crown and then some. You will be missed.

Kamalee is preceded in death by her parents, a brother, and three sisters – Charles, Rosa, Vernita, and La Vera. She is survived by her three children: Mrs. Tamara McKethan (Herman), Mr. Nathaniel Williams (Joyce), Dr. Vernita Mayfield (Steve); six grandchildren, three great grandchildren, one brother, Nathaniel, and several in-laws, nephews, nieces, cousins, and other relatives and friends whose lives she touched.