Cecil Eugene Power

Cecil Eugene Power, 75, of Kennedale, Texas passed peacefully into Heavenly glory on Monday, May 12, 2025 with his loving wife Gayle by his side.

He was born to parents Andralene (Sparkey) Hale Power and Robert Edwin Power on September 7, 1949 in Fort Worth, Texas. When he was 8 years old, Cecil’s mother remarried James N. Ray. Their large blended family lived throughout the U.S., Germany, and the Panama Canal Zone and had many adventures and stories to tell of their memories.

Cecil attended Kennedale High School and graduated from Cristobal High School in the Panama Canal Zone in 1969. He returned home to Kennedale where he met his future wife, Gayle, on a blind date. He was soon drafted into the U. S. Army and served in the famed AMERICAL Division for 13 months in the Republic of Viet Nam during the Vietnam War. Cecil was an 11C (Infantry Indirect Fire Crewman). For his service, he received the Combat Infantry Badge (CIB), along with numerous awards and decorations. He contracted malaria during the waning months of his tour of duty. Afterward he returned home again and he and Gayle wed and were proudly married 53 years. They were blessed when their daughter Lindsay and son Jeremy were born. He provided well for his family and was a proud and hands-on father, supportive of all their activities. He later attended Tarrant County College using his GI Bill to study auto mechanics.

Cecil was a welder by trade, working at Harris Graphics in Kennedale for over 25 years. He was an avid sports fan and played on the football and tennis teams in high school. In later adulthood he won a pool tournament and a tennis tournament. He enjoyed watching tv and loved watching his Dallas Cowboys, along with every other sport imaginable, and everything tv had to offer. He enjoyed playing dominos with family and his favorite game was "42." Cecil also enjoyed playing golf, fishing, playing chess, traveling, gardening, building bird houses and feeding his birds, squirrels, and kitties.

Cecil is preceded in death by his father Robert Power, mother Andralene Ray, step-father James N. Ray, and brothers David Power and Rickie Power.

Those left to cherish his memory are his wife Gayle; daughter, Lindsay Tooker (Will), Fort Worth, TX.; son, Jeremy Power, Kennedale, TX; treasured grandchildren, Miles Power, Jax Power, and Sophie Tooker; aunt/sister Linda Hale; sisters, Sharon Wilkerson, Kathy Ray, Debra Bierman (Al); brothers, James Ray (Susan), Michael Ray (Lisa), William Ray (Gayle); and many nieces, nephews, family, and friends. 

Cecil will be missed by all who knew and loved him.

A memorial service will be held at Emerald Hills Funeral Home Chapel, 500 Kennedale Sublett Road, Kennedale, Texas 76060, on Saturday, September 6, 2025, at 11:00 A.M. officiated by Chaplin Terry Little. Burial of ashes with military honors following at Emerald Hills Cemetery. Family and friends are invited to a luncheon after the burial at IGNITE First Baptist Church at 1:00 p.m. Full details can be viewed here.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Cecil's memory to Community Healthcare of Texas, any Veteran's organization, or a charity of your choice.