Roy Lynn King

Roy Lynn King, born August 14, 1932, in Wellington, Texas, to James Luther Lawrence King and Lula Lois Hall-King, passed peacefully from this life at home on January 19, 2026, at the age of 93.

Roy’s funeral service will be 2:00 PM Saturday, January 31, 2026 at First Presbyterian Church, 525 N. Gray Street, Pampa, Texas. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery, 1500 N. Duncan Street, Pampa. Arrangements are under the direction of Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors and Crematory.

Roy came from a loving family of huggers and carried that legacy with him throughout his life. He had a gift for making people feel welcomed, seen, and safe, earning him the affectionate nickname “The Hugging Preacher.” His warmth was never an act—it was simply who he was. As a young man, Roy and his family were active members of the Pampa Odd Fellows, where he served as president of the Junior Fellows. Growing up during the Depression, he worked many jobs, including delivering newspapers while still in elementary school. He often reminisced about the kindness of customers who tipped him generously small gestures that stayed with him for a lifetime.

Roy chose the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), as he liked to say, because they let him “play on their baseball team.” Like any good teammate, he valued the diversity of multi-denominational collaboration. “Each has its own unique strengths,” he often said, and because his goal was simply to “go and make Disciples,” no single denomination ever mattered more than the mission itself. His success reinvigorating stagnant churches led to two national job offers, both of which he declined so he could continue serving in local congregations. An avid fisherman, Roy was most at home “in God’s Country,” above 7,000 feet in the Rocky or Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Roy graduated from Brite College of the Bible at Texas Christian University in 1958 and began his ministry at First Christian Church in Sachse, Texas. He then served at First Christian Church in Tucson, Arizona, before moving to Lubbock, Texas, to minister to students at Texas Tech University through First Christian Church, serving as Associate Minister and Minister to Students.

In the years that followed, Roy served faithfully as Senior Minister in congregations across the country, including churches in McAllen, Texas; Kansas City, Missouri; Jackson, Mississippi; Visalia, California; and Perryton, Texas. After retiring, he continued to serve through interim ministry at First Christian Church in Pampa and provided pulpit supply for First Presbyterian Churches in Pampa and Clarendon. He also served on regional and national boards, including National Parks Ministries.

Throughout his ministry, Roy was deeply committed to camps, conferences, and spiritual retreats. He counseled, directed, and championed these ministries, believing strongly in their power to shape lives. He also played a key role in the advent of Ekklesia Global, faith conversations, and retreats.

While serving in California, Roy was elected Regional Moderator for the Northern California–Nevada region of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). During his time in Kansas City, he led one of the fastest-growing Disciples congregations in the nation, resulting in two invitations to join the General Ministries in Indianapolis. Roy, however, was always about the people. He chose to remain in the local church, where he felt most connected to the work he loved.

His ministry was clearly a lifelong calling, and the breadth of his service paints a portrait of someone deeply committed to people, community, and faith. When asked what the secret was to his successful ministry, he said, “Just love them.” He touched countless lives simply by being himself and living “the Greatest Commandment” (Matt 22:36-40).

Those who knew Roy carry with them the warmth of his embrace, the ministry of his presence, and the example of a life lived with faith, humility, and love. His legacy endures in the congregations he nurtured, the ministries he shaped, and the family who will forever feel his influence in their hearts.

Roy was preceded in death by his siblings Lloyd King, Jimmy King, Jerrye Smith, and Danny King. For more than twenty years, he made his home on the Meers farm property just south of Pampa, Texas—a place he loved deeply and where he found great peace.

Roy is survived by his devoted wife of 72 years, Dorothy Louise Meers of Pampa, Texas; his daughters and sons-in-law, Eulaine and Ken McIntosh, and Michelle and Dave Beech; and his grandchildren, Tap, Wiley, and Mariah McIntosh. He also leaves behind sixteen nieces and nephews from the King and Meers families, along with their spouses and families, all of whom he cherished.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Roy’s name to one of the following: Good Samaritan Christian Services, 409 N. Ward, Pampa, TX 79065, Ekklesia Global – Healing Religious Trauma and Building Beloved Community: https://ekklesialove.com/donate/., Ministerial Relief and Assistance, Pension Fund of the Christian Church: https://pensionfund.my.site.com/giving/dn8n__SiteDonation.