Sam May, 83, dies

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Sam May,83, on 3/12/25. He was an entrepreneur from the very beginning-he started a paper route when he was 11

Sam May, 83, of Lancaster, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, March 12, 2023 at home.

Sam was born in Lancaster, PA on December 27, 1939, son of the late Leo and Mary (Heitz) May.

He was a graduate of Lancaster Catholic High School and went on to serve in the Army.

Sam was an entrepreneur from the very beginning-he started a paper route when he was 11, along with hustling pig-cutting boards to neighbors and bowling pin lamps. This planted the seed for his entrepreneurial spirit. At the ripe old age of 16, he started his own business, Sam's Stamps & Coins, in the back of his father's grocery store, Leo's Grocery, and went on to help start the Red Rose Coin Club.

The service then called his name, and he entered the Army in 1958. He often joked that his recruiter lied, and he didn't get the deployment he was promised, Germany, but he was happy to be stationed in Seattle as part of Missile Master, an assignment he greatly enjoyed. He held close many fond memories of this time and those he shared those times with. He then worked as an expediter for Boeing, before coming back home to Lancaster to be closer to his family.

Upon returning to Lancaster, he enlisted in the Navy Reserves. He went on to work for Hubley, Schick, and Grinnell, and a stint as a real estate agent, before he delved into being his own boss and started Kraft & Kollectors, which morphed over the years into Sam's Man Cave. Over the years the business developed as his passion for collecting changed, from stamps, coins, whiskey decanters, beer cans, beer steins to beer signs. He often joked he sold what he did not have room to keep for himself. His business was one of the greatest joys of his life, he loved his daily interactions with collectors who traveled from near and far. He never met a stranger and had the ability to talk to anyone, anywhere, sometimes to his daughters' horror.

Sam is survived by his daughters Shellee and Samantha; brother Ronald (Anne) May of Lancaster, PA; sister Freida (Wayne) Groff of Lancaster, PA; five grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; four nephews and six nieces. Also, a pack of grand fur babies that he would roll his eyes about how spoiled they were and then spoil them himself.

He was preceded in death by his father, Leo May, mother, Mary May, and infant sister, Lorraine.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Lancaster Meals on Wheels.

Sam's Memorial Page at:

www.TheGroffs.com