Kenneth Darrell May

Kenneth May, 68, of Gonzales, TX, formerly of White Oak, TX passed away peacefully on Sunday June 16th, in Gonzales, Tx surrounded by his family. He was born on February 3, 1956 in Gonzales, Tx to the late William Stephen "Bill" May and the late Patricia Nadine "Dean" Thomas-May. Ken graduated from Gonzales High School in 1974. He married Beth Graves on November 22, 1987 at First Methodist Church in Seguin.
At just six months old, he was diagnosed with Polio and was known to be the youngest patient at that time. He went to Warm Springs for treatment and rehabilitation. One of his first memories was seeing his Papaw and his brother Steve looking through the window while he was being treated at a later age. From age seven to thirteen he played Little League baseball. He also played baseball in high school as well as golf. His senior year his friends talked him into being the Apache Mascot and that was one of the highlights of his senior year. After high school he went to work for Holly Farms for three years in the maintenance department. For the next three to four years, he worked with Bubba Boehm in different parts of Texas doing machine/piping work. But his true calling was welding. He once told his father he wanted to be a welder and Bill did everything he could to talk him out of it because it would be too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter, but he was determined to weld. He got a call from Gonzales Manufacturing to apply for a job. He started doing carpentry work in the shop before they opened. He helped put in railroad tracks from one end of the shop to the other.
While working at Gonzales Manufacturing, he also volunteered at the EMS station as an EMT and served as president for a term. That's where he met his wife Beth who was also a volunteer EMT.
His welding career led him and Beth to move to the Geronimo area to work at TempFlex in New Braunfels; currently Flexonics Pathways. During his employment he traveled to five continents, fourteen countries and thirty-four states as a respected welder.
After approximately 25 years of a successful welding career, he and Beth moved to White Oak, TX to be near her parents until their passing. To keep busy, he worked for Brookshire Grocery and enjoyed taking cruises to different locations in the Caribbean.
Ken never met a stranger and he and Beth quickly became friends with everyone they encountered. He always made sure to leave a smile on everyone's face. He loved everyone with his whole heart and always made sure to say I love you.
Due to his health, Ken and Beth made their way back home to Gonzales to be near family.
Kenneth is survived by his wife of 37 years, Beth May, daughters, Kristy Radford (Eric), Krystal Pullin (James), Kena May (Isaac), Kendra May (Joe) all of Gonzales and Natalie Copeland-Madrid of Seguin, Tx. Son Bryan Copeland (Tiffany) of Sherman, Tx. Sister, Leann Weathermon of Gonzales, Tx. Brothers Steve May (Libby) of Bryan, Tx and Rick May (Marvalee) of Seguin, Tx. Thirteen grandchildren; Print, Matthew, Marcus, Brayden, Izaiah, Gabriel, Corey, Nico, Haley, Kylee, Kamryn, Jaxen, John. And numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, grandparents and father and mother-in-law, Wendall and Natalie Graves.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, June 29th at 11 am at First Methodist Church located at 426 St. Paul Street Gonzales, Tx 78629. The family will begin receiving visitors at 10 am. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to Heart to Heart Hospice located at 1340 Wonder World Dr Ste 2200, San Marcos, Tx 78666 or to a charity of your choice.
Friends may leave their condolences to the family by visiting www.seydlerhillfuneralhome.com. Arrangements are under the care and direction of Seydler-Hill Funeral Home.