Terrance "Terry" Michael Lester

Terrance "Terry" Michael Lester, age 69 of Gulfport, passed away on Tuesday, December 2, 2025.

We met on October 26, 2006, and from that day forward, my life was never the same. We were married on June 9, 2008, and spent the years that followed building a life filled with love, laughter, music, and endless projects. He had a gift for working with his hands — if I could dream it and sketch it, he could build it. From the slide-out cutting boards in the kitchen to the mantel around our fireplace, his handiwork fills this home. Everywhere I look, I see the imprint of his love, his patience, and his skill. The work of his hands will far outlive us all.

Terry was an audio engineer along the Gulf Coast for more than 45 years — a man who lived for good sound, good tools, and a job well done. He loved creating things that worked, things that lasted, things that made life a little more beautiful.

He is survived by his forever loving and devoted wife, Cathy Lester, and their children and grandchildren who carry on his legacy of creativity, humor, and strength: Shane (Natalie) Lester, and their daughter, Laura (Dylan), Teresa Lester, and her children, Kailei (Hunter), Kaydn (Tre), and Kaisyn, Jesse (Gemma) Gallimore, and their children M’Kaia and Isaiah, and James Gallimore; his grandchildren, Kaleigh, Jordan, and Kaleb; his sister Kimberly, who remains a loving connection to the family he cherished; and his nieces and nephews, special neighbors, his great-grandchildren Dominic and Aria, and those who went before him.

He was preceded in death by his father, William Edward Lester; his mother, Dorothy Dale Sanchez; his daughter, Christen Stewart; his sisters, Sherian, Sandy, and Yvonne; his grandson, Michael William Gage, and his great-grandchildren, Alice and Ashton.

He was a man of quiet strength and endless curiosity — a fixer, a teacher, a maker, and a dreamer. Those who knew him will remember his gentle humor, his steady presence, and the way he could turn an ordinary day into something meaningful.

His absence leaves a silence that can’t be filled, but his spirit is in every nail, every song, every memory he built with his hands and heart.

Visitation will be held from 3:00 - 5:00 pm on Sunday, December 7, 2025, at Simply Church, 18233 Hwy 53, Gulfport, MS. The funeral service will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, December 8, 2025, at Simply Church with another visitation beginning at 10:00 am. Burial will follow the funeral service at Gulf Pines Memorial Gardens in Long Beach.

Riemann Family Funeral Home, Gulfport, is honored to serve the family. An online guestbook may be signed and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com