Saturday, August 1st, 2026
James May
James Lee May, age 90 of Celina, Ohio passed away on Wednesday, July 29,2026 at the Trustwell Living at Miller Place Nursing Home in Celina.
He was born in Auburn, Indiana on March 17, 1936 and raised in Kendallville, Indiana. He moved to Celina in June, of 1969. On June 4, 1960 he married Beryl "Sam" Locke, whom preceded him in death on February 27, 2025.
Jim is survived by two of his children; Lynne (Dan) Nighswander of Celina, Kim (Paul) Stone of Avon Park, Florida. He is also survived by three granddaughters Emily Nighswander of Celina, Betsy (Ryan) Hughley of Indianapolis, Indiana and Holly (J.R.) Todish of Cambridge City, Indiana, two great grandchildren and his brother Jerry Songer of Naples, Florida.
In addition to his parents and his wife Jim was preceded in death by his son Scott May, his brother Warren Tarney and his sister Mary Jane Tarney.
James proudly served his country in the United States Air Force from 1958 -1961 at the McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey. He worked in Human Resources for over 40 years serving as Human Resource Manager locally at Huffy's in Celina and New Idea in Coldwater and finally retiring from Clopay Corp. in 1999. He was a member of the Celina V.F.W. Post #5713 and the Celina American Legion Post #210. He was also a member of the Western Ohio personnel Association and served as President in 1979. He also served on the board for the Mercer County Council on Aging and did consulting with the Wright State University Business Development Program. He also taught Business Management courses at the Wright State Lake Campus in Celina.
A Memorial Gathering will be held on Saturday, August 8, 2026 from 10:00a.m. until 12:00p.m. at the Lehman-Dzendzel Funeral Home in Celina. Military Honors will be performed following the memorial gathering, at the Lehman-Dzendzel Funeral Home, by the Celina American Legion Post #210 and the Celina V. F. W. Post #5713.
Memorial contributions may be made to Trustwell Living at Miller Place in Celina or to EverHeart Hospice.
Condolences may be shared with the May Family on-line at LehmanDzendzelFH.com.
