As the Greer family assembled together to reminisce about Doyle Greer many fond memories came to mind. Doyle was a compassionate and proud man. Born on a farm in Mahomet, Texas he grew up milking cows, sloppin’ the hogs, and picking cotton in fields. However, his success in life was foretold early on when he won a baby beauty contest.
He was a great story teller and loved to recall the days of his youth when he and his brothers and sisters swam in the creek and ran around the countryside. He also told of catching catfish bare-handed in the rocks of San Gabriel creek.
He served in the US Navy and almost starved to death on Guam. According to him, the Navy food never made it that far west and they had to live off Spam for quite a while. When he got out of the Navy, he married his country sweetheart. His “Joppa Gal” as he lovingly referred to Ruth, was his loyal and dedicated wife for nearly 61 years.
Doyle loved to watch sports, especially baseball and golf. He was an avid Astro fan for 44 years. Doyle founded and was President of Northeast Little League in San Antonio to help area youth and afford his sons, Keith and Gary, the opportunity to play ball. He enjoyed fishing and playing golf. He caught the biggest bass of his life on Keith’s 21st birthday and declared, “Happy Birthday!”. Just a couple of years ago he was very pleased when he managed to shoot his age in a golf game.
Doyle was a committed follower of Christ and chartered both Northeast Baptist Church in San Antonio as well as our very own Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Spring, Tx. He attended church every Sunday and enjoyed Sunday school socials where he played dominoes. He even helped Mark Wilson to obtain his Master’s in Forty-Two.
In retirement, he was involved in a fiction or non-fiction book almost constantly and worked the crossword in the paper every day. Although he never completed a degree of higher learning, he was a very intelligent and educated man. He was well respected in his professional life among his FAA colleagues. He also did vast amounts of research to compile many generations of his ancestry. He wrote and self-published a book called “Some Early Greers of Burnet County” detailing his roots and adventures as a youth. A copy resides in the Burnet County library.
Doyle loved his family. He was famous for the wheel barrow rides he gave his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. It is uncertain who had the most fun during the rides; PapPa or the kids. When kids got too big for the wheel barrow rides, Doyle loved nothing better to sit at the table and play dominoes, Rumikub, or Mexican Train with his family. He had a great sense of humor. Even as the cancer was ravaging his body his mind and sprit were sharp and he was still cracking jokes. As the Greer family joined together in love and sorrow, they cherished the time they spent with Doyle. The family agrees that it is such a blessing to remember with much love and admiration the life and accomplishments of Doyle: a great man and the cornerstone of their family.