Obituary of Meredith Melvin Spence

Meredith “Mert” Melvin Spence Of Davin, WV Meredith “Mert” Melvin Spence, 76, of Davin, with love and comfort from his children, requested his hat and took his leave from this life on April 21, 2021. He was born May 11, 1944, in Kiahsville, the son of the late Thomas and Elizabeth Howard Spence. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Racine (Adams) Spence; sons, David and Stephen Spence; sisters, Lois Abraham and infant sister Helen; and brothers, Joe Lee, Jeff, Jarvie, and Thomas Spence. Meredith is survived by his sons, Thomas Spence and John and Tensia Spence, all of Davin; daughters, Elizabeth Ann Spence of Hurricane and Patsy J. Spence of Davin; grandchildren, Josh Bradshaw, Dwayne Bradshaw, TaMara and J.A. Jobe, Ryan Brown and his fiancé Magan Hammond, Coty Bays and his fiancé Whitney Brown, Cory and Tabby Spence, Makayla, Cheyenne, and Travis Vance; great-grandchildren, Tyler Williams, Josh Bradshaw, Gracie, Alessa, Kyte, Caius, and Sebastian Brown, Avery Spence, Broty Bays, and baby Owen Bays arriving in August; and sisters, Nora White, Judy Wessolek, Mary Varney, and Sally Smith. He leaves behind several in-laws/out-laws, nieces, and nephews. Mert was a mountain man and he took to the mountains and streams as much as he could. He loved to hunt, fish, and dig roots. Ginseng seemed to find him when he was ‘senging. Before his retirement in 2000, from Statewide Roofing, on no work days, he would hit the mountains with his ‘seng hoe. Mert or Papaw, depending on how you knew him, delighted in a good game of cards, from Go-fish to Poker, he could deal them all. In years past, he savored a good beer and a good time. Make no mistake, he played hard, but worked harder. Mert indulged in hunting and fishing trips, depending on the season. He could cook a hot pot of chili to deer steak tenderloins. He was a wonderful story teller. Mert told of his life adventures to family history. He was proud to welcome new grand and great-grand children to the family. Some of his best days were spent holding the newest little ones, or watching and playing with “the babies.” He will be remembered often and missed immensely. Visitation will be held from 6-9 p.m. Tuesday, April 27, 2021, at the Krantz-McNeely Funeral Home at Man where services will begin at 7:30 p.m. with Rev. Charlie Abraham officiating. Graveside services will be held at 1:00 p.m. Wednesday, April 28, 2021, at the Adams Cemetery on Beechy Creek, KY. Pallbearers will be family and friends. In lieu of flowers, the family requests, as Papaw would want, “you spend your money and your time on your babies.” Online condolences may be sent to www.krantzmcneelyfuneralhome.com Krantz-McNeely Funeral Home at Man in cooperation with Roberson Funeral Home at South Shore, KY have been entrusted with the arrangements.