When Ray Daniel Williams was born on January 19, 1918, in Sabine, Texas, their father, Ray, was 24 and their mother, Margret, was 21. He had one brother and four sisters. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II as a Staff Sergeant in the 772d Bomber Squadron, 463rd Bomber Group (Heavy). He entered service in Texas. Machine gunner of the B-17 Fortress, type G-50-DL, serial number 44-6287, which took off from Celona, Italy, on a mission to Valence, France. Their plane, with 10 people aboard, was hit by flak at 12:17 and crashed on August 15, 1944, near the French town of Upie. Eight of them escaped, one was taken as a prisoner, but he was the only one who died. He was initially buried in the town of Crest before being repatriated to Texas. He is now buried at Magnolia Cemetery, Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas, USA.