Debbie Panter Guyton

After graduating from Cartersville High School in 1968, she was employed for a short time at the local newspaper when she left there to marry Marvin Griffin Guyton, Jr. in 1971, moving to Atlanta. When they returned to Cartersville, Debbie began work as the administrative assistant at First Baptist Church of Cartersville where she served for 15 years. She then became the office manager and administrative assistant extraordinaire at Heritage Baptist Church, retiring there in 2016.

The congregations with whom Debbie worked saw her as far more than a “church secretary,” dubbing her as the “minister of communications.” She knew the phone numbers of the majority of the members of the congregation by heart. She had a unique ability to anticipate the needs of members of both the church staff and the congregation before they even asked. The day-to-day workings of the church office ran smoothly because of her dedication to even the most menial of tasks—such as dealing with equipment vendors and copier jams— to the most important in handling situations which required great sensitivity. She was truly a “right hand” to the pastors with whom she worked.

While she served at First Baptist and at Heritage Baptist, she was also instrumental in the establishment of the Cartersville Counseling Center and continued to maintain the appointment schedule for that organization. She possessed that absolutely essential quality for one in her position: She could be entrusted with maintaining absolute confidentiality in situations that required it—whether it involved the counseling center or the churches where she worked.

In addition to a host of friends, Debbie is survived by her husband, Marvin Guyton, and by her children Craig Guyton (Donna) and Janet Vucetic (Henry), as well as beloved grandchildren, Bailey Norman (Ben) and Griffin Guyton and Hank and Guyton Vucetic. She is also survived by her brother, Scott Panter (Susan) and her sister, Gayla Lane (Ronny) as well as nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be Sunday, September 3rd from 1:00-3:00 at Heritage Baptist Church. The service will be at Heritage Baptist Church at 3:00 with the Reverend Jeff Wright officiating.

In lieu of flowers, please make memorial contributions to Heritage Baptist Church, PO Box 38, Cartersville, GA 30121.