William May

William Clifford May, 86, of Erlanger, Kentucky, died February 14, 2023, at ProMedica in Chillicothe, Ohio, after a short battle with cancer. He was predeceased by mother, Lou Edra Lewis May; father, James Clifford May; brothers, Robert Elmo May and Jerry Howard May; and grandson, Collin Andrew  Detty. He is survived by sisters, Marcella Scott and Lou Ella Eves, both of Siloam, Kentucky; daughter, Sharon Sue Patrick and sons, Thomas Vaughters  May and Timothy Todd (Ginny) May, all of Chillicothe. Also surviving are grandson, Andrew Maurice Patrick, of Chillicothe;  granddaughter, Amanda Odessa (Jason) Conley, of Oxford, Ohio; grandson, Bradley Michael Detty, of Hilliard; grandson, Hunter Todd May, of Columbus; granddaughter, Kinley Reese Nicole May, of Chillicothe; also his great grandsons, Reilly Owen Conley, of Chillicothe; Flynn Odess Conley, of Oxford; and Miles Andrew Detty, of Hilliard.   Bill was born April 1,1936, in Siloam, Greenup County, Kentucky. He graduated from McKell High School in 1953, president of his class and the FFA, captain of the basketball team, being all conference in NEKC, and also as a member of McKell's first baseball team. He continued to be chairman of the alumni reunion for many years. He was an avid sports participant and fan. After high school, he continued playing basketball, baseball, fastpitch softball, bowling, and golfing in many local community and work leagues. He also coached youth basketball and baseball, and in addition, he officiated basketball in Ohio and Kentucky and volleyball in Ohio. Bill was also involved in local dirt track racing and loved all types of car racing. He later became involved in sprint and mini-sprint car racing. He was the co-founder of the Midwest Mini-Sprint Association. He bought and sold sprint cars and parts for many years. Throughout his life, Bill continued to be a University of Kentucky basketball fan. He knew histories of many sports teams and players and was a virtual sports encyclopedia.   Bill started working as a kid picking and selling berries, then as a teenager doing farm work and laying pipeline. He studied business administration at Ohio University and Shawnee State. He had two twenty-year careers, first at Charles Taylor Sons, North American Refractories brick plant at South Shore, Kentucky, starting as a lab tech and progressing to the plant superintendent until moving on after twenty years. He worked a short time at Dravo Lime Company in Maysville, Kentucky. He then moved to managing coal terminals on the Ohio and Big Sandy Rivers, working for Coal Terminals, Inc.; Kentucky Ohio Transportation; Cooper T. Smith; and finally retiring from Island Creek Coal Company. He was a member of the Lexington-Cincinnati Coal Exchange.   Bill was of the Protestant faith. He loved old time gospel hymns. He also loved bluegrass and country music and attended many music festivals. He loved family gatherings and especially attending grandkids' games and school activities.   Per his wishes, there are no services, and burial of his ashes will be planned by his family in Siloam Cemetery in the future.
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