Victoria L. Williams, affectionately known as “Vicky,” was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 11, 1949, to the late Rosamond and Raymond Johnson.

A lifelong Bostonian, Victoria devoted more than three decades of her professional life to public service and to improving the lives of the people and communities of Boston. Her career with the City of Boston began on January 9, 1980, when she was hired as a Project Specialist with the Department of Property Equality. Her intelligence, determination, and leadership quickly led to positions of increasing responsibility. In January 1981, she was promoted to Area Supervisor, and later that year became Assistant Manager of Property Equality.

In April 1983, Victoria moved to the City's Assessing Department, and on July 2, 1984, she was appointed Associate Commissioner of Assessing. In April 1987, she continued her advancement in city government when she became Assistant Commissioner of Regional Administration with the Parks Department.

On July 1, 1992, Victoria began what would become one of the defining chapters of her career when she was appointed Executive Director of Fair Housing. In that role, she became a prominent advocate for fairness and equal opportunity in housing throughout Boston. Her work included monitoring affordable housing lotteries, advancing fair housing protections, and developing fair housing testing initiatives in collaboration with community and legal partners, including Suffolk University.

In July 1999, Victoria's responsibilities expanded further when she became Executive Director of the Office of Civil Rights, where she continued her work on behalf of Boston residents through multiple city administrations, including that of Mayor Thomas M. Menino. Her leadership reflected a deeply held belief that government should serve people fairly and that every resident deserved dignity, opportunity, and a voice.

After more than 32 years of service to the City of Boston, Victoria retired on July 14, 2012. Retirement, however, did not mean retiring from service.

Victoria remained deeply involved in the civic life of Roxbury, Dorchester, and the greater Boston community. She served as Chair of the Ward 12 Democratic Committee, continuing her longstanding engagement with neighborhood issues, civic participation, and voting rights. In 2022, she worked alongside organizations including the Boston NAACP and Urban League on issues concerning Boston's redistricting process and the representation of its neighborhoods.

Her commitment to housing and community also continued beyond her municipal career. Victoria served as Board Chair of Senior Care and Housing Advocacy, where she helped secure financing for the complete renovation of the organization's building, furthering its mission of providing safe and affordable housing for low-income seniors.

For Victoria, public service was more than a profession. It was a calling that spanned decades and continued long after she left City Hall. Whether working within city government, advocating for fair housing and civil rights, supporting seniors, or lending her voice to the concerns of her neighborhood, Victoria believed that meaningful change came from showing up, speaking up, and doing the work.

Those who knew Victoria will remember far more than her titles and accomplishments. They will remember her strength, wisdom, determination, compassion, and unwavering commitment to the people around her. She believed deeply in service, fairness, family, and community, and she lived those values throughout her life.

Victoria leaves behind a legacy measured not simply by the positions she held, but by the people she helped, the institutions she strengthened, the doors she helped open, and the community she worked tirelessly to make better.

Her work on earth may be complete, but the example she set remains with us. We honor Victoria's life by carrying forward the values that guided hers: to serve, to care, to advocate, and whenever possible, to make a difference in the life of another.

Left to Cherish Her Memory

Victoria was one of four children and is survived by her siblings, Lynne McCall (Sammy McCall); Veronica Eghan (Crosby Eghan); and Jeffrey Johnson.

While Victoria devoted so much of her life to serving others, family was always at the heart of who she was. She embraced motherhood with love and devotion and took great pride in the family she built and the generations that followed.

Left to cherish her memory are her loving children, Tracy Jones (Terrence Jones), and Jason Williams (Saundi Williams); her cherished grandchildren, Kobe & Kailyn Jones (East Coast Grands), Maiya & Ami Williams (West Coast Grands); Chester Williams; and a host of aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and dear friends whose lives were enriched by her love, strength, wisdom, and presence.

Though Victoria will be deeply missed, the love she gave so freely will continue to live on through her children, grandchildren, family, and all those fortunate enough to have known and loved her.