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Helen Williams, native of Buffalo and mother of Vanessa Williams, dies at 85

Williams was a graduate of East High School and SUNY Fredonia
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Helen Williams, a native of Buffalo and mother of singer and actress Vanessa Williams, has died, three weeks after celebrating her 85th birthday.

Williams' death from acute liver failure was announced by her daughter on social media. She died in London, where she had traveled to attend opening night of the musical The Devil Wears Prada, which stars Vanessa Williams in the title role of Miranda Priestly.

"On December 28th, the world lost a powerhouse, dynamo and force of nature packed into a 5ft frame," Williams wrote in a moving Instagram post. "It's impossible to describe all she meant to everyone because each person saw a different facet of her. Loyal friend to many, icy stares to a chosen few. We will miss it all."

Described as "an impassioned advocate and activist for the arts, education, women's rights, racial equality and social justice," Helen Williams was born in Buffalo in 1939 and raised in the city's Hickory Street neighborhood. According to her family, she was among a handful of students who integrated East High School.

After graduating from East, she attended SUNY Fredonia, where she received a bachelor's degree in music education. It was at Fredonia where she met the love of her life, Milton A. Williams, Jr. The couple married and moved to the Bronx after graduating.

Even after leaving Western New York, Williams' ties to the region remained strong. SUNY Fredonia honored her with the Jessie Hillman Award for Excellence in Education in 2010, the Fredonia Alumni Association's Outstanding Achievement Award in 2017, and established the Helen Tinch Williams Recital in 2022.

In 2015, Vanessa Williams returned to her mother's hometown to marry Buffalo native Jim Skrip at St. Stanislaus Church. At their reception that followed at the Statler, the couple provided guests with postcards featuring their parents on their own wedding days, according to People magazine.

Helen Williams is survived by her brother, Federick Tinch of Kenmore, her daughter Vanessa and son Chris, four grandchildren, and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks friends to consider making a donation to The Helen Tinch Williams Vocal Performance Fund at SUNY Fredonia.