Warner Wesley Massingill
Warner Wesley Massingill was born December 17, 1957, in Paris, Texas. He died from a sudden heart attack on November 27, 2018, at his home in Richland Springs, Texas. Warner is survived by his only child, his son Wess Lee Massingill. He is also survived by three sisters Anna, Vickie, and Katherine, along with numerous cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews.
Warner was the second child of Clayton Nathan Massingill and Jacqueline Ruth Cowen. Clayton was working on a pecan farm and driving a small truck at the time, so the first three children were born on the road, so to speak. Warner’s oldest sibling, Vicky Renee, was born in 1955 in Breckenridge, Texas, at the home of Jacqueline’s mother, Donnie Cowen. The small family briefly moved to Paris, a tiny town in North East Texas, where Warner Wesley was born in the home of his mother’s oldest sister, Lucy. Another sister, Katherine Ruth was born not far away in Olney. The family quickly settled into the Old Stone House in Hamilton, Texas, where Anthony Daniel was born in 1963 and Anna Sue in 1965. While Clayton traveled and lived in various parts of Texas, Jacqueline and the kids moved in with grandpa Albert, an elder member of the large Massingill clan.
Warner started school at Hamilton elementary and quickly made friends. The family move every year until Warner eventually decided to stay put in Hamilton at which point he moved in with Clayton’s brother, Freddie Massingill and his wife, Martha, where he was raised alongside cousins Tommy and Scotty, whom Warner thought of as his sister and brother. Warner was happy with his new family in Taylor Valley, run by patriarchs Tom and Enez Taylor.
As an adult, Warner lived in Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, and many little towns in between. He eventually fell in love with and married, Katlyn Whitmire on October 6, 1990. Warner, and his “classy lady” as he called her, had a beautiful son, Wess Lee, who was born April 24, 1991, in Clifton, Texas. The happy family bought a home in Evant, Texas, where they lived for several years. Warner worked for Jim Balow, delivering gas to farms, and later for Terry Seal, driving trucks cross country. This allowed him to be home for days at a time and watch his son grow up. Warner always described this time as the happiest of his life. He absolutely doted on Wess and would say that his son made him a better man.
Unfortunately, there were people in Warner’s life that repeatedly dragged him down some unsavory roads. The result was that Warner missed out on a decade of watching his son grow up, something he described as his only real regret.
In 2006, Warner settled into a house in Comanche, Texas, where he raised goats on a 5-acre farm. Following a mild stroke in 2011, Warner met Kellie Thompson, who became a close friend and caregiver. Kellie, along with her mother, Barbara, and brother, Ted, helped Warner live a normal life. Warner’s mother passed away in January 2017, leaving Warner a home and land in Richland Springs in San Saba County. Warner lived there for nearly two years and was able to continue his close friendship with the Thompson family who lived next door. Thanks to Terry, Ted, Barbara, and Kelly Thompson, Warner had constant friendship, regular rides to the doctor, and all the great food he could eat. They were the first people present at his passing, and Warner’s family is eternally grateful for their friendship.
Warner bequeathed his home and land to his beloved son, Wess. It was always Warner’s hope to be the father that Wes deserved. For those of us who knew him, Warner was exactly who he was supposed to be. And he touched all of our lives. He will be missed.
