Gary Williams
Community Director &
Brand Ambassador Gen7
Gary is the embodiment of our Community Pillars. As a Gen7 Fuel Elder and Brand Ambassador, Gary assists in guiding all community initiatives of Gen7 Fuel with a particular emphasis on arts and athletics. Gary is a proud member of Curve Lake First Nation, serving as their Chief for some time.
He is passionate about Indigenous rights, traditions and culture. Gary can be found creating music, coaching hockey and karate, and running his several successful businesses in the Curve Lake area.
The Early Years
Gary Williams comes from humble beginnings in Curve Lake, Ontario. As a child, his father practiced a traditional lifestyle of hunting and gathering while his mother worked cleaning houses and making traditional crafts.
Eventually Gary’s father realized that the traditional lifestyle was not going to provide for his family, so he began working construction for the Curve Lake band. Gary’s father went on to open his own construction business, and his mother became a teacher’s assistant at the Curve Lake School.
Adult Life in Curve Lake, ON
Following his graduation from high school, Gary went on to Conestoga College where he received a Meat Cutting Certificate. From there he moved to Scarborough, Ontario where he worked for a German delicatessen as a sausage maker.
While working at the delicatessen, Gary would often take leave to go back to Curve Lake to work construction for his father’s company. For several years Gary went back and forth until he decided to open his own construction company in 1989.
It was at this time that Gary began learning about his culture and traditional teachings. He attended ceremonies and listened to Elders as they brought teachings to the community. Gary decided to run for Chief of Curve Lake and won, starting his term in the mid-90s.
Chief Gary Williams
During his time as Chief of Curve Lake, Gary learned even more about the history and culture of his community, particularly how mistreated his people are by corporations and governments. He was Chief at the time of the Ipperwash Standoff in 1995 and during the release of The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) in late 1996.
Gary went on to serve as both a Curve Lake First Nation Councilor and the Economic Development Officer of Curve Lake First Nation. He continues his work within the Curve Lake community today — now as a successful Gen7 Fuel business owner.
Following his father’s example, Gary runs his businesses on the principles of hard work, valuing employees, being fair to yourself and the customer, over delivering when possible, and most importantly…giving back