Stephen Marc Williams

On Friday, July 12, 2019, Stephen Marc Williams, loving husband and father of two daughters, passed away at his home in Princeton, NJ, after a year of declining health, at the age of 60.

A transplanted southerner, Steve was born in Montgomery, AL, on February 25, 1959 to H. Glenn and Barbara (Hanke) Williams. Steve graduated from Jefferson Davis High School as Class President in 1977, and as a first generation college student received a Bachelor’s degree Cum Laude in History from Princeton University in 1981. After graduation, Steve launched an illustrious 38-year long career in the global banking industry, most recently as a Product Designer for Bloomberg’s evaluating pricing service.

Prior to that, Steve worked for Fannie Mae, in Washington, D.C.; CF Global Trading, in NYC; Mummert & Co, of Munich, Germany; Barclay’s Capital, LLC, of NYC; Deutsche Bank Securities, of NYC; Lazard Freres, LLC, of NYC; The First Boston Corporation, of NYC and London; and Bankers Trust Corporation, in NYC. Throughout his career, Steve was particularly passionate about mentoring university students and early career professionals.

Steve and Charlotte Treby McLaughlin met at Princeton University in 1980, and they married in September 1988. Together, they raised two daughters, Charlotte and Anna.

Steve was a board member of Isles, Inc., a community development and environmental organization based in Trenton, New Jersey; a Board Member of the Historical Society of Princeton; and served as Treasurer of the Board of Governors of the University Cottage Club at Princeton. He was also a member of various social and athletic clubs. In New York City, Steve was a member of the Racquet and Tennis Club and the The Leash Club, as well as the Amwell Valley Conservancy, the Bedens Brook Club, and the Pretty Brook Tennis Club in Princeton.

Steve was a lifelong enthusiast of ideas, sports, movies, and music. He was an avid traveler and history lover. After completing a college internship in Freiburg, Germany, Steve became fluent in German and cultivated an appetite for travel. He lived in London for five years, where he grew lifelong relationships and went on innumerable adventures, from rafting in the former Yugoslavia to a safari in Kenya. Steve was a true Renaissance man and never stopped acquiring new interests and hobbies. He voraciously read works of history (particularly regarding the U.S. Civil War), economics, literature, and poetry. Over his life he played golf, court tennis, squash, and wrestled. He was an avid fan of the Princeton Tigers and the University of Alabama football team. He also loved bird hunting with his beloved Brittany Spaniel “Monty.”

Steve was a highly ranked high-school chess player and would amaze his fellow students by playing against them “blindfolded,” with his back to the board. He co-produced a movie about the early days of the Beatles, Backbeat, starring Stephen Dorff, in 1994, and also supported the launch of Final Touch, a London-based music production company. Particular eclectic musical favorites included Steely Dan, Warren Zevon, and Yes. Throughout his life, Steve was known for his restless intellectual enthusiasm and acuity, his explosive humor, and his kindness and generosity to friends and strangers.

Steve was preceded in death by his father, H. Glenn Williams, of Montgomery, AL. He is survived by his wife, Treby, his two daughters, Charlotte and Anna, his mother, Barbara Williams, his sister Shannon Norwood, Andrew Norwood, and their two sons, Rob and Patrick.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, July 20, 2019, at the Princeton University Chapel at 5 o’clock p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Isles, https://isles.org/donate/ and the Historical Society of Princeton https://princetonhistory.org/
support/.