Cornelius Williams was born on November 14, 1956, in Detroit, Michigan. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force Reserve on May 31, 1975, and went on active duty beginning August 15, 1975. SRA Williams next completed Basic Training at Lackland AFB, Texas, in October 1975, and then served as an Admin Specialist with the 4392nd Aerospace Support Group at Vandenberg AFB, California, until leaving active duty on August 14, 1979. He received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Air Force Reserve on May 29, 1981, and later enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard on January 7, 1985. YN3 Williams served as a Seaman aboard the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Cimarron (WLR 65502), a 65-foot river buoy tender ported out of Paris, Tennessee, from 1985 to October 1986, followed by service as a Yeoman at the U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C., from October 1986 until his honorable discharge from the Coast Guard on June 30, 1995. Williams then re-enlisted in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, serving as a Medical Service Technician at Andrews AFB, Maryland, from July 1995 until his retirement as a Master Sergeant on July 29, 2007.