During the peak of his career, Jimmy Williams held a coveted spot as one of Atlanta’s most influential leaders.

Williams was a key connection point at the intersection of power between Trust Company Bank (later SunTrust and now Truist), the Coca-Cola Co. and the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation.

By the time he was elected president and CEO of SunTrust Banks in April 1990, Williams had already been a director of the Coca-Cola Co. since 1979, thanks to a special friendship he held with Robert W. Woodruff, the legendary leader of Atlanta’s most recognized brand. 

Woodruff recognized Williams had unique talents — a photographic memory when it came to balance sheets and financial records that would be invaluable to the Coca-Cola Co. Williams served as a director of the Coca-Cola Co. until April 2013, long after Woodruff’s death in 1985.

Williams also served on the board of the Woodruff Foundation, the largest philanthropic entity in the Southeast, since its inception in 1985. He stepped down as board chair in 2018, handing over leadership to a SunTrust colleague, Jenner Wood. But Williams remained on the board until his death Tuesday from complications of Parkinson’s Disease. The family’s obituary is below, which includes memorial service information.

Shortly after I began writing a business column for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 1991, I wanted to know who the most powerful people in Atlanta were. “The two Jimmys” was a response I got from insiders — referring to Williams and his closest friend Jimmy Sibley, a King & Spalding attorney who also served on the board of the Coca-Cola Co. and the Woodruff Foundation.

During that time, little happened in Atlanta without getting the backing of the two Jimmy’s.

I remember one lunch conversation with Williams when I…