Garreth E. Joiner

Rev. Garreth Elbert Joiner, age 91, went to be with the Lord on February 19, 2016, in the loving and caring community of MRC Crestview Retirement Center in Bryan, Texas. He was born in Kingsville, Texas, on August 19, 1924, the third of four children.

He is survived by Elaine Giltner Joiner his wife of 68 years, four children: Judy (married to Dr.Rafael Cardenas), Larry (married to Dr. Helen Lee Joiner), Donna (married to Rev. Jim Sliger), Kathy (married to Rev. Todd Rogers), nine grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren, as well as many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents Dewey Hobson Joiner and Leta Fosselman Joiner and his three siblings Clyde Joiner, Minibeth (Hugg) Joiner, and Dorothy (McLain) Joiner.

Rev. Joiner’s life was characterized by one of continual service here in the United States and abroad. After graduating from Baylor University he served in the U.S. Navy from June 1944 -1946. He and Elaine married on June 24, 1948, and entered Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he received a Master’s of Divinity Degree.

He and Elaine felt the call for full-time missionary work after serving in the pastorate in a couple of churches in Texas and presented themselves for appointment as missionaries to Ecuador by the Baptist Foreign Mission Board in 1950. For 40 years Rev. Joiner and his wife Elaine evangelized, planted congregations and built churches, started schools and Bible institutes all the way from the Andes, to the Pacific coast and finally in the Amazon River Basin of Ecuador. All four of their children were born in Ecuador.

Rev. Joiner became very fluent in Spanish and knowledgeable of the Ecuadorian culture. He was well-respected by his missionary colleagues and loved by the people of Ecuador whom he also grew to love deeply. In 1989 he retired from full-time service in Ecuador but continued to use his time to enable other missionaries to take furloughs so as not to leave the work unattended. He filled in for them on various occasions in Ecuador, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. In his late 70’s Rev. Joiner and Elaine traveled twice to Chengdu, China, to teach English in the university during a summer program which opened the doors for further friendships that led people to a saving knowledge of Christ.

Life for Rev. Joiner not only involved preparing his sermon and class notes and preaching, but also spending time with family on beach outings, and reading and singing to his children. Otherwise, he was a very quiet man who spent time reading extensively and working very difficult crossword puzzles. Such was his reputation that Elaine often quipped, “He says so little for being a man with such a huge vocabulary.”

Rev. Joiner will be remembered as a loving husband and father who wanted others to know His Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and who spent his life living out his faith.

The Joiner family would like to extend our gratitude to all the staff at Crestview Retirement Community in Bryan, and specifically those in the skilled nursing ward for their attentiveness and loving care.