In Loving Memory of Ida Geneva May June 16, 1943 – April 8, 2025 Heaven gained a master gardener, a treasure hunter, and a soul who made every holiday sparkle a little brighter. Ida Geneva May, 81, peacefully passed away on April 8, 2025, surrounded by love and the legacy of the beauty she so joyfully created. Born June 16, 1943, Geneva was a woman who could take an ordinary patch of dirt and turn it into a blooming masterpiece—or a simple moment and turn it into a cherished memory.

She was preceded in death by her beloved parents, Henry and Margarine Reed, her dear sister Darlene Atkins, and the love of her life, her soul mate, John William May. What a reunion they must be having.

Those left to cherish her memory include her son Barry May (Jewel); her brothers Bud Reed (Linda) and Mike Reed (Brenda); her sister Ellen Netherland; and countless nieces, nephews, family members, and friends who were touched by her warmth, wit, and wonderfully whimsical spirit.

Geneva had a heart that bloomed as brightly as her flower gardens. She had an eye for beauty—whether it was tucked away at a flea market or glowing in a child's laughter at a family gathering. She loved a festival, a chance to celebrate, or a reason to decorate her home with joy. Her home is a museum of love, memories, and the treasures she gathered along the way. She will be laid to rest in a private family service in Chatham, Louisiana, where the magnolias bloom and her memory will forever linger in the breeze.

Though she has left this world, Geneva's legacy lives on in every flower that blooms a little too boldly, every holiday that's celebrated with too many lights, and every trinket that makes you smile and say, "That's so Geneva." A Garden of Her Own "She loved the earth, the blooming things, the joy a flea market treasure brings. She sowed with laughter, reaped with grace, And left her love in every place. A gentle soul, a heart so wide— She's in God's garden now, arms open wide."