Kriti Mehrotra
With Lifetime’s Alexandra Dean-directed ‘The Judd Family: Truth Be Told’ living up to its title in every way conceivable, we get a documentary series that can only be described as utterly authentic. That’s because it incorporates exclusive archival footage and exclusive interviews to really underscore the complex life led by country singer Naomi Judd with her daughters, singer Wynonna and actress Ashley. Amongst those to feature in this incredible 4-part original production is none other than the late star’s former boyfriend, Craig Williams, especially with the way he had a positive impact on her being.
Craig Williams is an Army Veteran Who Became a Close Family Friend of the Judds
Craig Williams was reportedly born in 1948 in Westbury, New York, resulting in him spending most of his teenage years surrounded by talk of battle owing to the way the Vietnam War began in 1955. Therefore, he ended up enlisting in the army by the time he was 20. Yet, he specialized in communications rather than combat by attending their language training center, the Defense Language Institute in Washington. He was subsequently deployed to South Vietnam, where he served his nation for a year before returning to find himself facing nothing but the trauma of the atrocities he witnessed.
According to reports, Craig soon fled New York City to settle down in a small cabin deep within the woods of rural Kentucky without any running water or electricity, to find his real self. Little did he know that by 1975, he would have a new outlook on life thanks to not only his decision to enroll at Eastern Kentucky University for a Bachelor’s in Philosophy but also his bond with the Judd family. He had first come across Naomi and her daughters while they were residing in the small town of Morrill. As they got to know each other, sparks developed between Naomi and Craig.
As per the docuseries, Naomi and Craig’s relationship was drastically different from anything she had experienced before because he was good to her and her kids in every sense. He cared for them, supported her as she attended nursing school, encouraged her daughters to explore their passions, and even taught her eldest how to play guitar upon learning about her interest in them. Thus, he is arguably the one who fell the dominoes that led to Naomi and her eldest, Wynonna, ultimately becoming a 5-time Grammy Award-winning country music duo called The Judds. But alas, his romance with the single mother came to an end a short while later when the family escaped Morrill, Kentucky, in the late 1970s after having been robbed and feeling as if their privacy had been violated.
Craig Williams is a Proud Non-Profit Entrepreneur and Family Man Today
In 1978, Craig graduated from Eastern Kentucky University, only to settle down in Berea, Kentucky, for good and gradually even find his true calling in the world of philanthropy. He actually co-founded the now-renowned Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation in 1980, serving on its Board of Directors for 17 years and thus playing a role in establishing the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, too. This coalition’s sole objective is to have different organizations come together to ensure a world free of war mines and air-dropped bomb wastes, all the while helping their survivors lead fulfilled lives. So, of course, although it was only launched in October 1992, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines had such an effect that it won the Nobel Peace Prize less than 5 years later in 1997.
As if that’s not enough, in 1984, Craig also co-founded an institution called Common Ground for the sole purpose of coordinating community efforts to ensure the safe disposal of chemical weapons. His work here actually went to such an extent that he even managed to successfully convince the Pentagon to stop their plans of incinerating stockpiles of chemical weapons by highlighting all the risks it poses. As a result, he was honored with the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2006, cementing his name as one of the most significant war veterans turned anti-war and environmental activists.
Therefore, we should also mention that Craig is also the brains behind the Kentucky Environmental Foundation, which focuses on clean energy, safe chemicals, and safe chemical weapons disposal. This organization was established in 1984, and he continues to proudly serve as its Director to this day, using legal routes, media campaigns, community movements, and other means for his activism. Coming to his personal standing, from what we can tell, Craig is a happily married father and grandfather who never shies from expressing precisely what his family or their unconditional support means to him. Therefore, today, from spending quality time with his partner to having adventures with his grandkids to attending environmental conferences across the globe, this 77-year-old does it all. In fact, most recently, the vocal environmental and political activist went fishing with one of his grandsons, attended soccer games of others, and even went on a family vacation to Disneyland.
Read More: Larry Strickland: Where is Naomi Judd’s Husband Now?
