In 1960, Byrd Brown, then-president of the NAACP's Pittsburgh branch, asked Dorothy A. Williams to head up the youth chapter of the organization.

"He gave me the chapter, but no kids," she said, recalling the event for a 1997 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article. Nevertheless, Mrs. Williams, a second-grade teacher at Weil Elementary School at the time, took to street corners, held dances and utilized her nephews to enlist Pittsburgh youth in the civil rights struggle.

Mrs. Williams, who headed the organization's youth, young adult and University of Pittsburgh chapters from 1960 to 1966, died Saturday, one day after her 81st birthday. A Hill District resident most of her life, she had spent the past seven years living in Shadyside with her nephew and caretaker, Jonathan Tyler.

Mrs. Williams led NAACP youth chapter members, which at one point numbered 6,000, in protests against Downtown stores such as Gimbels and companies like Duquesne Light to gain more employment for blacks.

"Dorothy is responsible for breaking up the discrimination against black folks as clerks in the shoe stores, Downtown," said Ralph Proctor, one of Mrs. Williams' recruits.

Mr. Proctor, special assistant to the president for diversity and equity at Community College of Allegheny County, said Mrs. Williams is one of the unsung heroes of the Pittsburgh civil rights movement.

"She was an inspirational leader, articulate but never pushed herself in the forefront," he said. "It was always her kids that were the important ones. ... She molded us, shaped us, helped us become responsible citizens."

Mrs. Williams carried out this mission despite concerns from school officials, who wanted her to avoid controversy. In 1965, she won the Ike Small Award from the national NAACP for having the largest and most active youth group in the country. She gave up the post after her multiple sclerosis began taking a toll.

"She was just so direct, so honest and just completely sincere," said Pat Kimbrough, a close friend of Mrs. Williams, who was a member of the NAACP Young Adult Chapter. "You never had to wonder how she felt and what she believed."

Born in Aliquippa, Ms. Williams, the youngest of five sisters, moved to Pittsburgh at 12. After graduating from Schenley High School, she earned a bachelor's degree in education in 1950 from Cheney College, which was a women's teaching college at the time. She later received a master's degree in education from the University of Pittsburgh.

In 1964, Ms. Williams became a teacher with the Pittsburgh Public Schools, spending 38 of her 40 years in the district at Weil Elementary.

"She always had special incentives for the children," Ms. Kimbrough said. "She had baby dolls in the classroom, and if someone was having a bad day, they could go and get a baby doll." She also had special toys for the boys.

Mrs. Williams also remembered her students' birthdays, bringing in special treats to help celebrate each one, Ms. Kimbrough said.

In 1964, Mrs. Williams promised her students she would write a children's book after they asked her why there weren't any characters in the books she read that looked like them.

Thirty years later, after retiring, Mrs. William kept that promise by starting on those books. The end result was "J.K.'s New Friend" and "The Birthday Party," which featured a black child named J.K. and his dog, Butch. She also wrote a version of the book in which J.K. is Hispanic.

Unfortunately, the books were never published, said her nephew. But he and his brothers may try to accomplish that task as a tribute to their aunt, he said.

"She was comfortable among kings and the poor," said Mr. Tyler.

Mrs. Williams also had a flair for performing, he said, adding that she actually did a few gigs as a comedian at an old club in East Liberty, now the site of the Giant Eagle.

"She got multiple sclerosis [in 1964] and never got a chance to get really involved in the stage," he said.

Friends will be received from 3 to 7 p.m. tomorrow at Coston Funeral Home, 427 Lincoln Ave., Larimer. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Friday at Pilgrim Baptist Church, Juniata Street, North Side.