Joe Penner

(May 20,1943-April 6, 2020)

Joe Penner of Beaumont, Texas, died on April 6, 2020, at the age of 76. Born in Pryor, Oklahoma, he grew up in the countryside outside of Tulsa. He graduated from Oklahoma State University in 1966 with a degree in electrical engineering.

Joe began his career with General Electric Corporation where he was employed for thirteen years. For the remaining twenty-seven years of his career, he worked as an electrical engineer for Entergy Corporation (formerly Gulf States Utilities) in Beaumont, Texas. Joe was a registered professional engineer (P.E.). Creative and resourceful, he had the ability to fashion ingenious solutions to electrical and mechanical problems, and he could design, build, and repair almost anything. Though he was remarkably gifted, he was the most humble of men.

Joe met Jenny on January 1, 1969. They were introduced to each other at church by Mrs. Love. The story of Joe and Jenny's own love began that day and continued unabated for over 49 years. A number of months after they met, Joe was working out of town in New Jersey. While there, he wrote Jenny a letter declaring his love and proposing marriage to her. At the conclusion of that letter, he included a passage from Psalm 34:3: "O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together." Joe honored his commitment to God and to Jenny throughout their marriage, which began on July 18, 1970.

Joe's priorities in life were his faith and his family. He was a member of First Baptist Church of Bevil Oaks for many years and was a deacon in the church. He loved singing in the choir, studying the Bible, teaching an adult Sunday School class, and working with the youth on Wednesday nights. Joe was a member of, and speaker for, the Gideons, an organization dedicated to distributing Bibles to hotels, prisons, nursing homes, students, and hospitals. He was a firm believer in God's role as creator of the universe and was a supporter of such organizations as Institute for Creation Research in Dallas, Texas. Joe's commitment to God and to a life of faith was evident in all he did. As one of his co-workers stated during a speech at Joe's retirement ceremony, "Whenever you hear the name Joe Penner, you think of honor, integrity, and honesty."

In addition to his faith, Joe gave priority in life to his family. His love for his wife, children, grandchildren, and other family members was boundless. He and Jenny spent many vacations camping with their children. They particularly loved to travel in their RV to state parks and U.S. Corps of Engineers campgrounds in various areas of the country. Their favorite state parks were Palo Duro Canyon State Park in north Texas and Fall Creek Falls State Park in Tennessee.

Joe is survived by his wife Jenny of Beaumont, Tx.; son Andrew Penner and wife Valerie and family of Lumberton, Tx.; daughter Elisabeth Hale and husband John of Houston, Tx.; granddaughter Ava Penner of Kountze, Tx., grandson Ethan Penner of Lumberton, Tx.; sister Ronda Wise and husband Bill of Broken Arrow, Ok.; brother Lloyd Penner of Mt. Hope, Ks.; brother-in-law James Davis and wife Joan of Dallas, Tx.; and extended family members, Pamela and Christian Edmonds and family of Kountze, Tx.

Joe's family members wish to thank Mrs. Roselyne Vertil, R.N., Ms. Vickie Chery, and all the other staff members at Serenity Assisted Living of Beaumont, Texas, who provided so much love and care to "Mr. Joe" and "Ms. Jenny" during their eleven-month stay there.

The memorial service for Joe Penner will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 10, 2021, at First Baptist Church of Bevil Oaks, 7725 Sweetgum Rd., Bevil Oaks, Tx. 77713.