Bois d'Arc cross on Meinecke-Boyd Ranch in Tishomingo, OK close to burial site

Gene Frank Boyd, 74, of Warr Acres, Oklahoma, formerly of Ardmore and Tishomingo, passed away in Oklahoma City on November 1, 2011, after a lengthy illness. A memorial service is planned at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 9, 2011, at the First Presbyterian Church, Ardmore, with the Rev. Dr. Rick Baggett officiating. Interment will be at 2:30 P.M. at the family ranch on Blue River Road north of Tishomingo. Services are being directed by Craddock Funeral Home & Cremation Services, Ardmore.

Mr. Boyd was born October 9, 1937, in Lubbock, Texas, to Wayne and LaVey Lamb Boyd. The Boyd family made their home in Plainview, Texas, where Gene graduated from Plainview High School in 1955. He attended Texas Tech and was a member of the golf team, Phi Delta Theta fraternity, and Alpha Zeta agricultural fraternity. In 1960 he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture, with a major in agronomy. He married Betty Sue Meinecke, also of Plainview, on February 27, 1960, at the First United Methodist Church. They became active members of the Open Door Sunday School Class.

Gene was engaged in farming west of Plainview until 1974, when he and his wife moved to Tishomingo, Oklahoma, along with their two children, Alison and Keith. Until the year 2000, Mr. Boyd managed the Simmental cattle breeding and ranch operations of Meinecke-Boyd, Inc. north of Tishomingo. He won numerous awards for excellence from the American Simmental Association and the Oklahoma Simmental Association, and in 1999 the Oklahoma Simmental-Simbrah Association honored him with a special recognition for having been the first registered Simmental cattle breeder in the state. While living in Tishomingo, he also served on the Johnston Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees for many years, and was a director of the Johnston County Conservation District.

Golf was his favorite sport and hobby, starting at age 12 and continuing until early summer 2011, when his health declined to the point he could no longer participate. Mr. Boyd was a steady and enthusiastic member of Dornick Hills Golf and Country Club, Ardmore, for more than 25 years. In recent years, he had traveled to Panama yearly to play golf at Cielo Paraiso, a golf development near Boquete.

He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Betty Sue Boyd of Warr Acres, OK; daughter Alison Beth Haston of Norman and grandson Evan Haston; son Keith Payne Boyd and his wife, Cynthia Boyd of Oklahoma City and granddaughter Debbie West of Tishomingo; brother Richard Wayne Boyd of Los Altos, California; nieces Julia Fiello, Evona Hartzell, and Devora Taylor; and nephews David Wayne Boyd and Thaddeus Hutchinson. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Honorary Pallbearers will be Reid Hutchens, Hugh Tilson, Bill Taegel, Jake Johnson, Lynn Watkins, Donald Lee Terrell, Jim Miller and Mark Slover.