ROY WHEELER

AMARILLO, Texas- Visitation will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, with a memorial service at 2 p.m. on Friday, at Hillside Christian Church in Amarillo, for Roy Wheeler, 85, who died Friday, Aug. 25, 2017, in Wichita, Kan.

Memorial contributions may be made to Ozark Christian College, 1111 N. Main St., Joplin, MO 64801.

Survivors include his wife of 66 years, Elnore; a sister, Fay Harlow and husband Dan, Ft. Wayne, Ind.; his sons, Ron of Irving, Randy and wife Chris of Detroit, Mich. and Rick and wife Susan, Derby, Kan.; seven grandchildren, Angela Segars and husband Jarod, Josh Wheeler and wife Kirsten, Aaron Wheeler and wife Danielle, Ashley McLeish and husband Dean, Patrick Wheeler and wife Lauren, Kasey Congdon and husband Jeremy and Chloe Helmer and husband Colton and 12 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his brother, Ray Wheeler and a granddaughter, Vryna Wheeler.

Mr. Wheeler was born Nov. 6, 1931, in Western Grove, Ark. He grew up on his parents’ farm in Western Grove and in 1949 he went to Ozark Bible College in Joplin to play basketball. While there, he became a preacher. Through the years he ministered in churches in Missouri and Arkansas, and held revivals all over that part of the country. In 1966 he moved to Amarillo, Texas, where he became the pastor of Paramount Terrace Christian Church (now Hillside Christian), which soon became one of the fastest growing churches in the city. In the 1990’s, he helped plant churches in Russia and Belarus, taking 17 trips to the former Soviet Union. He also held church growth conferences in Australia and throughout the United States.

In 1999 he retired from Paramount Terrace for health reasons, but soon served as a consultant for West Amarillo Christian Church and later at Amarillo South Church and helped them experience rapid growth. Later, he was hired back at Hillside Christian to help with weddings, funerals and hospital visitation. As his health declined further he finally retired from Hillside for good in 2014.

He had a passion for God and a love for people and spent his lifetime helping them get better acquainted. His legacy lives on through his children and grandchildren who served in ministry today and through the countless young ministers and missionaries he encouraged and supported through the years.