Carl Williams

BREA, CALIF.—Carl Williams, the longtime president and instructor of the Academy of Textiles & Flooring (ATF), died on May 28 following complications of a heart attack. He was 67.

Williams, who was born on Nov. 19, 1941 in Seth, W.V., served as a parachute test jumper in the Navy before getting into the industry. Known for his wonderfully unique sense of humor, he was active in the flooring for more than 35 years, and made a larger than life name for himself in the carpet cleaning and inspection arenas.

Beyond being ATF’s president and instructor Williams founded the Whittier, Calif.-based school. He was also a past president of the Carpet Cleaners Institute and was a proud recipient of its prestigious Joe Laurino Carpet Cleaner of the Year Award, and a five-time recipient of the Bill Bailey Memorial Award.

Williams also served as regional supervisor for the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification and was an instructor for several industry associations for more than two decades.

He also authored the “Floor Covering Industry Dictionary” and the “Installation, Reinstallation & Repair Technician Manual,” as well as several other manuals, and co-author several books and training manuals ranging from water damage restoration to carpet cleaning.

Jack Freedman of the Cleaning and Fabricare Institute said of Williams, who also served as the organization’s President Emeritus, “Carl was a popular instructor, and a bigger than life icon in the flooring industry. He was the heart and soul of the IICRC. His instructional textbooks are used by many other instructors.

“Countless students and instructors who have been to Carl’s school have said how close they felt to Carl,” he added, “and that he was their mentor, and responsible for their successful careers.

“Carl loved to laugh, and make other people laugh,” noted Freedman. “He also was a student of stand-up comedy, and was proud to have performed at the Irvine Improv. He was working on a script for a television sit-com about carpet cleaners.”

Said Mike West of his longtime co-author, “We never stopped working together, until the day he died, to pass on our experience, knowledge, and, in Carl’s case, homegrown humor to many thousands of smiling students. He was a unique and irreplaceable asset to our industry, his community and his family.”

Williams is survived by his wife, Bobbie; sons, Mike (Angela) and Tim (Julie); two brothers, Huey and Gary; three sisters, Mary Phillips, Sue Hathaway, Kay Kendall, and six grandchildren.