William "Les" Willard Jr.

William “Les” Willard Jr. of Florence, South Carolina, passed away Sunday, Aug. 25, 2024. He was 61 years old.  Les was born in Monroe, Georgia, on Aug. 6, 1963, and lived there until he moved to Florence, where he planted strong roots. He attended Wilson High School and then started a business and made a career for himself in construction and contracting. While he loved the work he did, he was multifaceted and later worked in real estate and other fields, never turning down an opportunity to try something new in life.  In his spare time, you could find Les cooking for his family, spending time with his two dogs, Coco and Hugo, and working on DIY projects around his house. He was an avid Harry Potter fan, and he enjoyed the mountains, the lake and good conversations with the people he loved. He was proud of his three daughters, and his favorite thing was being “Poppa” to his granddaughter. He was looking forward to adding a grandson to his family in a few months.  Les is preceded in death by his father, William L. Willard Sr. and his brother, W. Mike Willard. Surviving are his daughters, Lindsey Willard, Lesley (Darian) McDaniel and Lacey (Caleb) Poston; his granddaughter, Adrian McDaniel, and her soon-to-be baby brother; his mother, Nancy (Phil) Cooper; his siblings, Pam (Dane) Davis and Lynn (Cindy) Willard; his stepbrothers, Dale Cooper Jr. and Derrick Cooper; and many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins.  A memorial for Les will be held at 11:00 AM, on Friday, August 30, 2024, at Stoudenmire-Dowling Funeral Home. Please sign the Guest Book for the family at www.stoudenmiredowling.com.