May Clare (Patteson) Braden

May Clare was born August 25th, 1933, Mt. Vernon, Texas and considered herself an East Texas farm girl, often found fearlessly riding bareback. Her father, Cad Clarence Patteson, was a WWI “doughboy” veteran and mother was Bernice “Beanie” Fletta Baker Patteson, a talented artist and homemaker. Clare enjoyed sharing her long family history including her 4th Grandfather, Colonel Patteson, who led a wagon train of settlers in 1855 from eastern Tennessee to build lives in an untamed area near present-day Paris, Texas. He and schoolmaster Thomas Hockaday established the Giles Academy in 1859.

Cad, Beanie and May Clare eventually moved to Dallas where precocious May Clare graduated from Crozier Tech High School at age 16. As a gifted sketch artist, she left for Austin to study Fashion Illustration and Design at the University of Texas. There, she met and married U.T baseball star, Guss Vincent Hrncir, in 1951. Guss was pivotal in helping the Longhorns win the 1950 College World Series National Championship.

After traveling with Guss to play for various minor league baseball teams, the couple settled in Lockhart Tx , he as a coach and Clare, among other jobs, became the first female deputy sheriff in the history of Caldwell County. Seeking more opportunities, Clare, Guss and children Deborah, Jim and Pat moved to Amarillo in 1961.

Clare joined Fitzgerald and Poole law firm as a legal secretary and purportedly ran all aspects of the practice. On nights and weekends, Clare also did court transcription work for several court reporters. Splitting from Guss in 1965, Clare continued to work at the law firm until 1974. Having married Bill Braden, the new couple commissioned the building of a 50-foot-long ketch (two-masted sailboat) in Wilmington California boat harbor. Together, they trained for adventures on the high seas, mastering morse code, certified Ham radio operations, navigation, and ship maintenance, then sailed throughout the entire western hemisphere for the next seven years.

Sailing alone with only sextant, compass, celestial knowledge, and navigation charts (prior to GPS navigation), they voyaged courageously. Their travels included the Arctic circle in Alaska, the Hawaiian Islands, the Pacific coast including U.S., Central and South America, through the Panama Canal, the Atlantic coast from South America to Canada, throughout the Caribbean and ultimately called St Croix their home port. Earning the respect and admiration of many adventurous sailors, they gained admission into the very exclusive Commodores Club.

By 1982, through boat-trading and shrewd negotiations, they ended up with a Grapefruit orchard outside of Harlingen, Texas which was almost immediately lost to a killing freeze. Working with Texas A&M, they became the first orchard in the Rio Grande Valley to replant with a brand-new grapefruit variety called Rio Stars, the reddest and sweetest grapefruit available. Granny Clare’s Citrus became famous and the grapefruit destination for local folk, visiting “Winter Texans”, civic groups for fundraising, and professional buyers.

An avid animal lover, Clare began raising pure-bred Kuvasz dogs. Enamored with professional dog shows, Clare drove herself and her dogs all over the country, competing in American Kennel Association shows and all her dogs were champions. She was especially proud to see Yani advance deep into the coveted Westminster Kennel Club show during one Thanksgiving.

In 2007, Clare and Bill went their separate ways, and she fulfilled her desire to return to her East Texas roots, purchasing a home near Quinlan, TX with plenty of acreage for her Kuvasz fur babies. When her female Kuvasz bore a litter of puppies, Clare kept two and continued to travel and compete in AKA shows until retiring from competition in 2015. Thereafter, she was content taking care of her beloved K-9s. But it must be said, her children and their lives were her greatest source of love and pride. She derived incredible joy from simply observing her children express love and respect for one another at family gatherings.

Clare leaves behind her three children, Deborah (Stephen) Walker of Palm Desert, California, Jim (Jan) Hrncir of Irving, Texas, Pat (Carla) Hrncir of Dallas, Texas; grandchildren Jack Walker, Channing (Chris) Laughridge, Taylor Hrncir, Hayden Hrncir, Jack Hrncir, Bobby, Hrncir; great-grandchildren Ella, Pierce and Beckham Walker, and Luke Laughridge.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.Sparkman-Hillcrest.com for the Braden family.