James Lawrence “Jim” Houser, missionary to Africa and Baylor University professor, died Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, at his home. He was 92. He was born Oct. 19, 1933, in Philadelphia, Pa., the third of four sons born to Myra and Delbert Henry Houser. After the family moved to Mesquite, Jim attended Mesquite High School, where he was active in sports. He later attended Baylor University, where he met Molly Alice Rogers. They married on Aug. 28, 1953, and were married 67 years when Molly died in Nov. 2020. Following Baylor, he earned a master’s in counseling from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, an additional degree from the University of Utah on a National Science Foundation grant, and then a master of education degree from Texas Wesleyan University in 1959. After hearing a missionary speak about their work in East Africa, he and his family began serving in many towns in Kenya and Tanzania. Jim and Molly left Africa in 1993 but continued their involvement in missions at the church and county level in Texas. During their post-Africa years, Jim was hired by Baylor University to teach Swahili, which he did for about 18 years. In July 2025, he moved to Missouri, where he married Carol Ann (Wallace) Brubeck, a former missionary in Tanzania. He was passionate about Africa and preaching, making at least ten return trips to Africa after leaving in 1993. He is survived by his wife, Carol; five children, Stacy Houser and wife Tami, Mona Entwistle and husband Dave, Bryan Houser, Scott Houser and wife Ana, and Bill Houser and wife Lisa; stepchildren, Dan Brubeck and wife Angela, Clint Brubeck and wife Ruth, Jessica Eisenhauer, Linda Brubeck, Maria Brubeck, and Mario Brubeck; three brothers, Charles, Don, and Paul Houser; 18 grandchildren, and 23 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and first wife, Molly Alice Rogers.

Mary Sue Kendall of Covington died Jan. 8 at age 97. Sue was born March 31, 1928, in Osceola to Wyatt Armstead and Jeffie Aline Burt. While working in the First National Bank of Grandview, she met her husband of 64 years, Joe Frank Kendall. During Joe’s Air Force career, they lived in such places as England and Rome, N.Y., serving churches wherever they lived. Upon Joe’s retirement, they returned and lived on their farm outside Covington just a mile away from where she was born. Sue was a faithful and dedicated member of the First Baptist Church of Covington, serving as the treasurer and leading a women’s Sunday school class for many years. Her Christian faith was her highest priority, and she firmly professed her deep belief. She was a prolific reader who enjoyed reading everything from the Bible to a good mystery. As for the Bible, she read it through completely every year. She made everyone feel welcomed and led her life with a servant’s heart like her Savior. Sue was preceded in death by her husband, Joe, and brothers, Roland and Frank Burt. She is survived by her sons, Joe Mark and wife Jacque of Shreveport, La., and Michael and wife Kwunjit of Southlake; her daughter Diann Kendall of Fort Worth; her four grandchildren, Kyle Kendall, Whitney Garmhausen and husband Geoff, Katria Kimble and husband Brandon, and Mica Kendall; her three great-grandchildren, Jack and Kendall Caroline Garmhausen and Wyatt Kimble; and her brother, Jeff Burt. Services will be held at First Baptist Church in Covington on Friday, Jan. 16, with the viewing at 10 a.m. and the funeral at 11 a.m.

Eloy Felan Jr, senior pastor of Primera Iglesia Bautista in Lubbock, died Jan. 2, at age 80. Born June 13, 1945, in Pearsall, Pastor Felan dedicated his life to sharing God’s love. After graduating from Wayland Baptist University, he began a ministry that spanned more than 51 years. Pastor Felan is remembered for his devotion to the church and deep love he held for his family. He and his wife, Lucia Felan, were married for 62 years. A man of leadership, humility, and strength, he touched many lives beyond the walls of the church. Beyond the ministry, he enjoyed playing golf, classic cars, hunting, racquetball, and fellowship with family and friends. Pastor Felan leaves behind a legacy of faith, compassion, service, and love. He is preceded in death by his son, David Felan; his parents, Eloy and Filomena Felan Sr.; and siblings, Ruth Garcia and Yolanda Ramirez. He is survived by his children, Eddie and Tonya Felan, Lori and Michael Parker, Rick and Maelynn Felan, Lisa Felan and Michael Rogers; 10 grandchildren, four great-grandchildren; as well as siblings, Petra Carranza, and Ysidro Felan; extended family; and dear friends.

Sergio Ramos, ministry leader and pillar of the Tyler County community, died Dec. 27 in Conroe. He was 82. He was born on March 26, 1943, in Tampico, Mexico, to Job and Ofelia Ramos. His proudest moment was becoming a U.S. citizen in 1970. Ramos, who had a passion for missions and church service, served as a deacon, choir member and missions team member and on the pastor search committee at First Baptist Church of Woodville. Ramos was also a member of the Texas Singing Men and served as music director for various churches in Tyler County for more than 40 years. For five decades, Ramos taught in the classroom and coached tennis. Ramos and his family, striving to live a life devoted to Christ, lived by a personal motto: “Remember who you are and who you represent.” Ramos was preceded in death by his brothers Homero and Juan. He is survived by his wife, Susan Ramos; daughter Stefanie Miller and her husband James; son, Stephen Ramos and his wife, Lauren; four siblings; four grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews. Visitation with the Ramos family is scheduled from 5 p.m. to 8p.m. on Jan. 2 at First Baptist Church in Woodville. A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Jan. 3 at First Baptist Church in Woodville. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be made to the Woodville First Baptist Church Missions Fund, 202 S. Charlton St., Woodville, TX 75979.

CORRECTION: The date of death was corrected from Dec. 7 to Dec. 27.

Doris Ann Tinker of Richardson, who served as executive associate to three Baptist General Convention of Texas executive directors, died Dec. 12. She was 92.

“Like a diamond, Doris Tinker’s life—fixed solidly in her deep faith in Christ, devotion to family and relation to friends—sparkled due to the many facets of her personality and character,” said William M. Pinson Jr., with whom she worked four and a half decades.

She was born May 24, 1933, in Jonesboro, Ark., to Jimmy and Lorena Rees. She expressed her deep faith in Christ through a lifetime of Christian service, while also caring for her family.

“Although she spent much of her life working outside the home, family was always the focus of her life,” Pinson said. “She often quoted her father, a Baptist deacon chair, about matters of Scripture and church.

“She cared for her mother with deep devotion. In her mother’s latter years, she visited her every day in her nursing home on the way to and from work.”

Nearly three decades at the Baptist Building

Doris Tinker worked more than a decade as the pastor’s secretary at First Baptist Church in Richardson. She served about three decades at the Baptist Building, working as executive associate to two BGCT executive directors during their entire time in that position—James Landes and Pinson. She also served Executive Director Charles Wade during a transitional time.

“Any person visiting the office was greeted by her with the same smile and words of welcome,” Pinson said.

In her role as executive associate, Tinker organized “a constant stream” of meetings, “keeping in mind the needs of each person,” Pinson recalled.

“Her abilities kept things running smoothly. She planned, organized, and guided conferences and meetings large and small with attention to the finest detail. She worked with the staff of the Baptist Building, hotels, conference centers, and various settings to make sure all worked well.

“At the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, with thousands of messengers and guests, she would walk through the facility before the convention sessions began to make sure everything was in order. And she did all of this with firmness but tact and courtesy.”

In retirement, she served another 25 years as director of communication and organization in the Texas Baptist Heritage Center as part of the executive director emeritus office.

‘Preferred to work in the background’

At the center, she helped work on 27 articles on Baptist beliefs and distinctive practices that were published in the Baptist Standard. She subsequently designed 19 leaflets based on those articles and Baptist Beliefs and Heritage, the book in which they were compiled along with other material.

She turned down the Texas Baptist Elder Statesman Award—now known as Texas Baptists’ Legacy Award “because it would bring too much attention to her,” Pinson recalled.

“She did not like the focus on her and preferred to work in the background without notice,” he said.

She was preceded in death by her brother, Buddy Rees, and her husband of nearly 65 years, B.W. Tinker.

She is survived by her son Greg Tinker and his wife Jennifer; granddaughter Stephanie Beazley and her husband Aaron Beazley; grandson Skyler Tinker and his wife Brittany; and three great-grandchildren: Jude Beazley, Esme Tinker and Callan Tinker.

A private graveside service is scheduled in December. A memorial service will be held at First Baptist Church in Richardson at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial donation can be made to HighGround Advisors for the Doris Tinker Endowment Fund (Fund 30119141), which benefits the First Baptist Church of Richardson youth ministry and Texans on Mission.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The first and sixth paragraphs were edited after the article originally was published to acknowledge that Doris Tinker served during a transitional period with BGCT Executive Director Charles Wade.

UPDATE: Information for the memorial service was added.

Ben W. Mieth Jr., supporter of global missions and Wayland Baptist University, died Dec. 8 in Glen Rose. He was 92. He was born on May 9, 1933, in Fort Worth to Ben and Ruth Mieth. His first experience in international missions came when he participated in a short-term, church-to-church partnership mission trip to Japan. The four teams from Baptist churches in West Texas saw 1,000 people make professions of faith in Jesus Christ. Mieth was convinced the same approach would work in Mexico. So, he worked with pastors in the Ojinaga area to partner with Texas Baptists in Vacation Bible Schools and evangelistic outreach. The initial mission trip resulted in 1,500 professions of faith in Christ and led to subsequent invitations to other areas in Mexico. Mieth and others at First Baptist in Seminole established the global missions and evangelism initiative as a nonprofit organization, forming International Crusades. The organization rebranded itself as International Commission in 2000. Mieth served on the Wayland Baptist University board of trustees from 2018 to 2022. His philanthropic gifts to the university included a $2.5 million donation to Wayland’s nursing education program in San Antonio and a $1 million commitment to improvements in Wayland’s Plainview campus. “Ben Mieth was an extraordinary man whose life reflected deep faith, strong character, and servant leadership,” said WBU President Donna Hedgepath “Wayland is a better place because Ben followed the Lord’s call with boldness and obedience. We praise God for his life and the eternal impact of his ministry.” He was a longtime member of First Baptist Church in Glen Rose. Mieth was preceded in death by his sister, Nellie Helen Mieth Flanary, and by his wife of 71 years, Bertha Dell Mieth on April 9, 2025. He is survived by daughter Debra Cavett and her husband Rodney; daughter Miki Martin and her husband Woody; son Bennie Mieth and wife Elaine; nine grandchildren; and 20 great-grandchildren. Visitation with the Mieth family is scheduled from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 20 at First Baptist Church in Glen Rose. A memorial service will be at 10 a.m. on Dec. 27 at First Baptist in Glen Rose. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be made to the First Baptist Church Glen Rose Building Fund or to the International Commission.

LaVern Plett, minister of education and denominational worker, died Nov. 11 in Dallas. He was 89. He was born to Jacob and Elizabeth Plett in Cimarron, Kan., on March 7, 1936. He graduated from Baylor University in 1959, having earned his Bachelor of Arts degree and developed a lifelong devotion and enthusiasm for the Baylor Bears. After he graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth and was ordained to the gospel ministry, he served as minister of education at churches in Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arizona, Hong Kong and Texas. He went on to serve on the Sunday School Division staff at the Baptist General Convention of Texas. He was a longtime Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church in Richardson. He was preceded in death by his brother, Eugene Plett of Los Angeles, Calif., and his sister, Sharon Bell of Carrollton. He is survived by his wife, Myra Plett of Dallas; son Greg Plett and his wife, Kimberly of Broken Arrow, Okla.; daughter, Melissa Hancock and her husband, Clayton of Ovilla; the mother of their two children, Julie Plett of Red Oak; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. His blended family includes two children through marriage, John Beasley and Jennifer Beasley Skinner; and six grandchildren. A celebration of life service, followed by a reception, will be held at 2 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2026, at First Baptist Church of Richardson. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, Dallas Chapter, 5000 Quorum Dr., Suite 530, Dallas, TX 75254.