Bill Kornegay

Billy (Bill) Dell Kornegay, age 89 of Gatesville Texas, passed away peacefully on Saturday, July 31, 2021 in Temple surrounded by his family.

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, August 5, 2021 at Gateway Baptist Church in Gatesville, with Rev. Mike Bradgon officiating.  The family will receive visitors one hour prior to services at the church.  Burial will follow at Restland Cemetery.

Bill was born on January 10, 1932 in Breckenridge, Texas to the late Hamp and Roby Kornegay.  He grew up as a farm boy in the small town of Rising Star. As a young man, he enjoyed fishing, hunting and often following the honeybees to their hidden hive for some fresh honey. Bill played football as a linebacker and graduated from Rising Star High School.  He and five others friend enlisted in the U.S. Army. They drove in Bill’s 1951 Chevy to Seattle, Washington to report for duty. Bill was deployed to Korea where his duty was to keep the radio tower operational.  He was honorably discharged and returned home after his service. 

Bill was blessed with the birth of his first daughter Karen in 1955 and then his second daughter Marlene in 1958.

Bill lived in Odessa and worked for El Paso Products. With his knowledge of the job and operations, he was offered a supervisory position at plant in Corpus Christi. He accepted the position after they agreed to cover the expenses to move him and his family. Bill work for them for 20 years before he decided to retire.  On February 26, 1979, Bill married the love of his life, Carral Ann Wittie of Gatesville. They have enjoyed sharing time together in activities such as square dancing in the early years, to the daily country back road drives looking for wild turkey and deer.

After battling a few hurricanes and retiring, in 1982, Bill decided to return to his roots of farming. He purchased his farm, “Lazy K Stock Farm” and built his new house in the small community of King just a few miles outside of Gatesville.  While enjoying his farm, Bill also worked at M.A.T.E.S where he started as a security officer. He loved to bring his grandchildren to work and show them the tanks parked on the lot. He later moved into a maintenance supervisory role and enjoyed the challenge to overcome jobs that most said could not be done. More times than not, he would find a way. Bill later retired from M.A.T.E.S., where he met many lifelong friends.  When Bill moved to Coryell County, he became a member of Gateway Baptist Church and remained an active member. In 2000, after overcoming lung cancer, Bill decided it was time to move his family into the City of Gatesville and has lived there ever since.  Bill had great faith in God and valued his family. Those values continue to live on.

He was preceded in death by his parents Roby and Hamp Kornegay; brother, J.W. Kornegay; sister, Dorothy Maxwell; and a daughter, Karen Marie Edwards Smith.

Bill is survived by his wife, Carral Kornegay; daughter, Marlene Kornegay; son, Tommy Morgan and wife, Barbara; grandchildren, Shawn Edwards and wife, Tammy, Christy Edwards, Aaron Edwards, Tanya Garceau and husband, Gary, Mark “Shorty” Edwards and wife, Lindzey, Jamie Srianekkul and husband, West, Dean Barclay and Amanda; seventeen great grandchildren and one great-great grandchild.

In lieu of flowers, the family has designated memorials be made to Brazos Valley Coalition on Suicide Prevention, 3200 Cougar Trail #D, Bryan, Texas 77807.