Our History

Williams & Associates, Incorporated was founded in October 2002 by Erise Williams, Jr., President/CEO, and James E. Green, Director of Operations. The vision of the agency is zero percent disparity and one hundred percent access in the areas of health and healthcare services for minority populations within the St. Louis Metropolitan Region. The history of the agency stems from the passion and commitment displayed by our founder, Erise Williams, Jr., when after more than 10 years of working in the area of HIV/AIDS prevention and care services, the fact that one could not address the impact of HIV/AIDS on minority communities without addressing other health issues that result from the racial and ethnic disparities in health that plague our country became really clear to him. Thus the birth of Williams & Associates, Incorporated, a non-profit minority community based agency addressing minority health disparities.

The alarm has sounded regarding the health disparities that have plagued the St. Louis region for decades. Those of us in public health are clear that the poor health outcomes among the region’s medically indigent population and a deteriorating health care safety net have prompted a variety of responses over the decades toward addressing these concerns. We at Williams & Associates, Incorporated are committed to continuing the sounding of the alarm on racial and ethnic health disparities until, as a region, we can report that the health and health outcomes of minorities in the St. Louis region have mad dramatic improvements. According to 2006 Census estimates, just over half of the population of St. Louis City is African American. This ratio of 50 percent is by far the highest in the state. However, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, the mortality rate for African Americans in the St. Louis region is 45% higher than for whites; many of the ailments that result in high rates of African American deaths are from preventable diseases, e.g., Diabetes, HIV/AIDS, Cardio-Vascular Disease, and some forms of Cancer.

Like African Americans, the Hispanic population is largely concentrated in the urban areas of the state Kansas City/Jackson County with the largest cluster of Hispanic individuals; 29 percent in KC, and 11 percent in St. Louis County.  Health disparities affecting Missouri’s Hispanic population are less well understood than those for African Americans. While Hispanics come from a wide variety of backgrounds and cultures, as a group they face many barriers to achieving positive health outcomes in today’s society. According to the Kaiser Family foundation, “Restrictions on SCHIP Enrollment Affecting Hispanics in Missouri, Hispanics are less likely than either white or African Americans to have insurance coverage for their health care needs, as evidenced by the percent of emergency room visits where the pay source was self-pay or no charge.

Our history of addressing health issues that impact these, and other populations, has leadership involvement with such coalitions and groups as the St. Louis African American AIDS Alliance, The Minority Health Alliance Advisory Committee of Missouri, The Minority Health Council of the American Heart Association, The International Federation of Black Prides, among others.  As our history undergoes its constant change, as history does, it is our hope that our efforts; as volunteers, paid staff, board members, and the clients we serve, become a part of the legacy  that’s a part of African and American history, a legacy that speaks to one  answering the call  when it comes to the survival of mankind. “Our Community, Our Health”