Herbert Ellsworth Lemay

EXTENDED AND AMENDED: Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm on Friday, February 24, 2017 at Moore Funeral Home, 1219 N. Davis Dr., Arlington, Texas with Kyle Johnson officiating. The public is invited to join the family for a time of visitation Friday from 12:30 to 2:00 pm at the funeral home. Pallbearers will be grandsons and great-grandsons: Jason Clark, Hunter Clark, Evan Clark, Jacob Clark, Brad Parlin, Brent Parlin, and Tarek Wallace. Burial will be in the Moore Memorial Gardens in Arlington. Herbert passed away February 21, 2017 at the age of 94.

Herbert Lemay was born to John W. and Pansy Lemay in Mountainair, NM on October 9, 1922. His family moved to Portales, NM in the summer of 1937 and he enrolled in PHS as a sophomore and graduated with the class of 1940. He was a teacher in PHS for 36 years. He taught Spanish, English and mathematics. He was an ambassador to the blending of cultures in Portales as the Hispanics started coming in from central and northern New Mexico following the years of WWII. He was a teacher in the ENMU early day extension program to Cannon Air Force Base teaching evening classes of beginning Spanish.

He earned his BA degree from ENMC now ENMU and got his Master’s from Inter-American University Saltillo, Coah, Mexico majoring in oral language usage and Mexican civilization. He did graduate work at CSCE Greeley, Colorado. His further education consisted of three summers of the NDEA Institute Program (National Defense Education Act) of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s at UNM, Albuquerque, NM; Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana; and University of Puerto Rico, Real Piedres, Puerto Rico.

He served in the Navy during World War II. He was a long time member of the First United Methodist Church. To complement the heartbeat that he had as an educator, after school hours, weekends, and summers he was a farmer at heart. He loved the potential of God’s green earth to provide for its inhabitants.

In retirement, he served on the executive board of Community Services Center. He was active in Friends of Eastern Foundation and Friends of Music at ENMU in their program of providing scholarship funds for deserving students. He participated in the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

He was a devoted parent and a strong proponent of family unity. In August, 2006, he moved to Irving, TX to continue the family unity by being nearer his two daughters and their families as well as two sisters who had relocated to the Dallas area. He had been a resident of Pinewood Hills Independent Living in Flower Mound since 2010.

He is survived by his son and two daughters: Barry Lemay (Barbara Lemay) of Colorado Springs, CO; Reeta (Lemay) Canada and husband Jim of Denton, Texas; and Karla (Lemay) Clark and husband Danny of Flower Mound, Texas. He is also survived by seven grandchildren: Carolee Lemay, Michael Lemay, Brad Parlin (wife, Whitney), Brent Parlin, Brooke Wallace (husband, Tarek), Jason Clark (wife, Lori), and Shalen Johnson (husband, Kyle). Surviving are 13 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by three sisters Marjorie Hale (husband, Elwood) Marguerite Curtis, and Mora Jane Baldwin; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Herbert was preceded in death by two grandsons: Dustin Clark and Brian Parlin; his brother J.W. Lemay (wife, Katherine Lemay); sister Violet Patterson (husband William L. Patterson); and brothers-in-law H.G. Curtis and Howard Baldwin.