Charles Donald Doyle, 1937-2020
Charles Donald “Don” Doyle, an International Mission Board missionary emeritus who shared the gospel among the American Affinity Peoples in Costa Rica, Guatemala and Mexico, died Oct. 6, 2020, his 83rd birthday, at his home in San Marcos, Texas.
Charles Doyle was born October 6, 1937, in Abilene, Texas, to the late Esther Renick and Lonnie A Doyle. He grew up in Anson and Floydada, Texas, and Portales, New Mexico. He graduated from Portales High School and received the Bachelor of Arts from Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, and the Bachelor of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth.
In 1957, he married his high-school sweetheart, Patricia Slone. While in college, he was pastor of Portales Baptist Mission and while in seminary he became pastor of Bethel Baptist Chapel, Quanah, Texas.
Doyle wrote when seeking missionary appointment that he gave his life to Christ as an 8-year-old at a Royal Ambassador camp where his father, also his pastor, had taken a group of boys. Later, he wrote, when he felt the Lord leading him to special service, his family’s interest in missions led him to interpret that leading as a call to missions. By then, his oldest brother was preparing to go as a missionary to Brazil.
The Foreign Mission Board (now International Mission Board) appointed the Doyles in 1964. They served 32 years as missionaries, primarily in evangelism, in Costa Rica, Guatemala and Mexico.
Doyle is survived by his wife of 63 years Patricia Slone Doyle; his children, Karen Morris of Lockhart, Texas, Kathy Tarry (Carl) of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Susan Nash (Don) of Austin, Texas, and James Doyle (Kimberly) of Carrollton, Texas; his brothers Lonnie Doyle and Bob Doyle; his sister Thelma Lacy; and eight grandchildren.
A memorial service was held Oct. 14, 2020, at First Baptist Church, San Marcos, and burial was to be at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church Cemetery, Wimberley Texas.
Read an obituary here.