Bubba Jay Edwards

Graveside service for Bubba Jay Edwards, age 62, of Sulphur Springs, Texas will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 2, 2025 at Gafford Chapel Cemetery with Pastor Jim Goodwin officiating. Visitation will be held an hour prior to the service from 10:00-11:00 a.m. at Gafford Chapel Community Chapel.

William Jay Edwards, known by most as Bubba Jay, was born on September 23, 1962, in Greenville, Texas, to J.W. Edwards and Linabeth Hoover Edwards.

Jay married Tish Blair on May 3, 2003, in Las Vegas, Nevada. They moved to Sulphur Springs in 2006 and made their home here for 19 years. They have one son, Kegan Edwards, who attends Sulphur Springs High School. Being the dad that he was, he loudly and proudly encouraged and supported Kegan, which he lovingly called Little Buddy, in anything and everything that he wanted to try. He was happiest when he was in the stands watching Kegan and his buddies play baseball and football.

He was an active member of Gafford Chapel Church, in Sulphur Springs, Texas, and previously served on church committees as well as the Gafford Chapel Cemetery Board of Directors. He loved the Annual Gafford Chapel Stew and Auction. Yes, you could guess, he had his own spot reserved on the back pew in church, but he would allow anyone to sit with him.

Bubba Jay attended schools in the Sulphur Springs Independent School District, where he graduated from high school in 1981. He made lifelong friends here and kept in touch with many of them. If you ever knew Bubba, you never forgot him. After high school, he began a career in the air conditioning industry, with one of his first jobs being at E-Tex Mechanical in Sulphur Springs, and he continued that career, in his current position as Project Manager at Aire Dynamics in Irving, Texas.

He loved many sports, including hunting and fishing. Bubba was an avid hunter, and one could probably write a book from all the stories and tall tales that have been told about their hunting trips. To say he was a big Texas A&M fan would be an understatement at best, and if you wanted to stay in good graces with him, you sure didn’t tell Aggie jokes around him, not even kidding. Bubba Jay was a collector of many things. If you know, you know.

Bubba Jay will be remembered as a big kid with an enormous heart; one who loved his family, friends, church, and community; one who was never at a loss for words, even if it didn’t need to be said; and one who could make you mad but still laugh, all during the same conversation. His big, strong hugs and his laugh will never be forgotten.

William Jay Edwards went to meet his Lord and Savior on June 27, 2025, at Christus Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, Texas. Survivors include his wife of 22 years, Tish Edwards; son, Kegan Edwards; sisters, Cheryl Kirk, of Magnolia, AR, and Stacy Gant, of Sulphur Springs. Bubba Jay leaves behind many special family members and beloved friends.

He is preceded in death by his parents, J.W. and Linabeth Edwards and an infant son, Cory Edwards.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider making a donation to the Gafford Chapel Cemetery:

Gafford Chapel Cemetery
C/O Markeda Price Fisher
102 Katie Ridge Road
Sulphur Springs, TX 75482