Ernest James "Jim" Reyna's Obituary
Ernest James “Jim” Reyna, 72, of McLean, TX, passed away on Thursday, October 17, 2024, in Amarillo.
Memorial services will be held on Friday, October 25, 2024, at 2 PM at Robertson Route 66 Chapel in McLean with Evan Weisse officiating.
Cremation and arrangements are by Robertson Funeral Directors of McLean.
Jim was born on October 21, 1951, in Fort Worth, TX, to Pete and Shirley (Rodriguez) Reyna. Ernest married his wife of 50 years, Ella Mae Langford, on January 26, 1974, in Hereford, TX. Together, they had 6 children. Jim was a Church of Christ minister for the past 35 years with his last church being in McLean. He spent his career working in the communities of Farmington, New Mexico and Pueblo, Colorado. Most notably, he had great success growing a church in Cheyenne over a seven-year period from 100 people to over 300.
Jim was a lifelong learner and thirsted for knowledge on any subject he was not familiar with. This led him to become a licensed motorcycle mechanic, a realtor, computer technician, and was currently taking music producer classes. His knowledge also expanded into being fluent in several foreign languages such as Spanish, French, Greek, Latin, and Italian. He loved all things Route 66 and enjoyed visiting with French sight seers who were greatly surprised to find a French speaker in the middle of the Texas Panhandle. Jim owned and operated Route 66 Computer Solutions in McLean where he helped locals fix their computers, oftentimes out of the goodness of his heart if someone could not pay. Jim loved motorcycles and was an avid Harley Davidson fan.
Jim was also a man of many talents. He was a leatherworker and was an excellent artist. Jim enjoyed drawing comics and was a fan of Marvel before it was popular. One of Jim’s greatest loves was music. His artist’s name was Texas James Reyna and he had even been offered a music deal when he was in his 20's, but refused, he instead decided he wanted to be a loving husband a dad and chose his family over fame and fortune. He had a special knack for songwriting and had a large guitar collection of 10-11 instruments.
He was preceded in death by his parents; son, William Reyna; brother Pete Reyna, Jr.; and sister, Linda Coakley.
Jim is survived by his wife, Ella Mae Reyna of McLean; four sons, James Reyna of McLean, Christopher and wife, Delores, Benjamin Reyna of McLean, and Jack Reyna and fiancé, Cassie, of Pampa; daughter, Rebecca Lefler and husband, Brandon, of Borger; step-mother, Sally Reyna; brother, Reuben Reyna of Pampa; step-brother, Gabriel Romero; step-sisters, Madeline Amaro, Susie Armijo, Corina Ulibarri, Kathy Mondragon, Judy Blue, Lisa Dant, Allison Zorn ;11 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren; and a host of nieces, nephews, and cousins.
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