Herman Keel Gathright

Herman (Sonny) Keel Gathright Jr, age 84 and born April 20, 1935 in Prescott Arkansas, passed away in Austin Texas on the morning of April 11, 2020 from COVID19. He was only the tenth person in Austin Travis County to die of the virus. He would have celebrated his 85th birthday on April 20. Herman married his wife of 63 years, Sylvia Jo Buckingham, in Corpus Christi Texas in 1957. They had two children, Glenda Gail and Herman Keel III. Herman retired from US Navy after 30 years of service at naval air stations in Corpus Christi TX; Pensacola, Jacksonville, and Key West, FL; and Albany GA. After retirement, he and Jo lived in Memphis TN, Houston TX, and Greenville MS, where Herman retired from Cooper Steel in the 80s. He and Jo then returned to Corpus Christi and later moved to Buena Vista CO, Leander TX, and finally, Austin TX. Herman was an electronics expert and tinkerer, a photographer, an artist, a storyteller, and an avid golfer. Herman loved to tinker. If something was broken, he fixed it. He taught his daughter about electricity and electronics. And he loved technology; he and Jo were early adopters of home computers, running a business in Houston selling them...[more]

View Full Online Obituary and Tributes

the early 80s. Herman's grandson Marshall remembers when his grandfather bought his first golf cart and how excited Herman was about every function and technical aspect of it. His grandson, Garrett remembers spending hours cruising around Herman and Jo's suburban neighborhood in Greenville MS on that same golf cart. Herman loved purchasing cameras, new and old. His computer was filled with all the wonderful photos he took of family and the mountains of Colorado. During his years in Key West he was inspired to paint landscapes of the area. He often took photographs and then used the photos as reference for his paintings. Although some of his paintings were sold in a local gallery, Herman preferred to give them to friends and family as a gesture of love; his daughter and grandson still have several. He inherited his storytelling abilities from his own father. It was through these stories that his family understood the history of his life. They learned about his parents, siblings, and childhood through the stories Herman retold from his own father's history. His children learned about his life in the Navy and about his young family through his stories. His grandsons learned about their mother and uncle's childhood through his stories. And eventually his great-grandchildren would learn about their father and uncle's adventures and time with their grandparents through his stories. He never tired of telling them. Everyone heard them more than once, and they painted a picture that will endure beyond him, much like his paintings. Herman loved to play golf in his younger years. He golfed with friends and in amateur tournaments, and he golfed with family. He took his grandsons to play at the Mt. Massive Golf Course in Leadville CO, and was thrilled to tell everyone they had golfed at the highest course in the United States - in fact it wasn't - but the story is better when told his way. That is now one of the stories his family will retell to remember him and add to their history, a history all the better because Herman was a part of it. Herman was preceded in death by his wife Jo, who passed 8 days earlier; their son Keel; his father Herman Keel Gathright Sr and mother Halsie Jane Chilton; and his sister Billie Ruth Richard. He is survived by his daughter Gail Hines; his grandsons Marshall Franklin and Garrett Kimbrough Hines; his brother, Alton Wayne Gathright, and seven great-grandchildren.