Keng

Keng Funeral services for James Keng, 80 of Ledbetter, were held at 2 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 23, 2024 at Phillips and Luckey Funeral Home in Giddings with Doug Tipps officiating. A private family burial took place in the Ledbetter Cemetery.

James Harold Keng was born April 20, 1944 at the Lee County home of his parents, Charlie and Emma Keng. He passed away on Aug. 20, 2024 at Baylor Scott & White Hospital in College Station at the age of 80.

James was baptized at the Assembly of God Church in Giddings, and became a confirmed member of Martin Luther Lutheran Church in 1963. For the past several years, he has enjoyed services at The Soul Cafe Church in Ledbetter. James had a strong faith which was reflected in his everyday actions of integrity, and how he was known for treating others fairly and with respect.

James graduated from Giddings High School and went to Blinn College in Brenham. He began working for Clarence Dean at Dean Paving Company in Giddings in 1962. After working for several years, he became a partner, then owner of Dean & Keng Paving Company, which eventually became Newman & Keng Paving Company. James also served a number of years as a director for Citizens State Bank beginning in 1978.

James married his high school sweetheart, Carolyn Lehmann on Feb. 22, 1964 and started his family near Giddings on the same property where he was born.

James had a love for cars, fishing, hunting, and new adventures. He loved his company and the young men who worked for him. James was known as “firm but fair” and many have said, “If you ever work for James Keng, you won’t want to work for anyone else.”

Throughout the years, James, his family, and his friends spent weekends at a home on Lake Amistad near Del Rio, horse racing in Ruidoso, New Mexico, and checking cattle at various farms across the county.

In 1986, James purchased a cattle ranch in Missouri, where he and his wife Carolyn continued to build their primary cattle operation. James especially looked forward to cattle work in June, when his children and grandchildren traveled to the ranch to help with the summer roundup. He cut trails for them to ride 4-wheelers and anxiously awaited the freezer full of fish fillets that often followed. James loved to cut and load hay during the haying season and took joy in watching his grandchildren become the next generation of equipment operators.

James’ love for adventure prompted him to learn to fly a helicopter, earning his pilot’s license in 1983. He also learned to ride motorcycles, and was known for an eclectic variety of vehicles and “big boy toys” over the years. He even purchased a shrimp boat as a business venture in the late 1980s.

Most years between Christmas and New Year’s, James enjoyed family travel adventures to destinations that included California, Mexico, Hawaii, and numerous Caribbean islands.

James was preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Emma Keng; his sister, Dorothy (Keng) Hoskins and husband, Norland of Sinton, and his brother, Robert “Sweet Pea” Keng and his wife, Delores of Giddings.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Carolyn (Lehmann) Keng of Ledbetter; two daughters, Jaime and husband Ron Manning of Giddings and Casey and husband Frank Smith of Giddings; son-in-law, James Newman and wife Michelle of Lincoln; eight grandchildren; three great grandchildren; his Missouri family, Paul and Penny Heithold and children, and numerous nieces and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made to the Ledbetter Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 213, Ledbetter, Texas 78946, the Soul Cafe Church, 426 Prospect Road, Ledbetter, TX 78946, or to a charity of your choice.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Phillips and Luckey Funeral Home in Giddings.