- Date Of Birth: August 8, 1940
- Date Of Death: February 2, 2020
- State: Texas
Gary Taliaferro peacefully transitioned from this life surrounded by the love and prayers of all his children on Sunday afternoon, the Lord’s Day, February 2, 2020 at Baylor Scott & White Hospital in Temple, Texas. Gary was born August 8, 1940 in Fort Worth, Texas to Arthur and Wilma Taliaferro.
Gary is preceded in death by his parents and his wife of 51 years, Kay Allen Taliaferro.
He is survived by his brother Ken Taliaferro and wife Diane of Fort Worth, TX; five children, Anthony Taliaferro and wife Lisa of Friendswood, Texas; Steven Taliaferro of Sveta Nedelja, Croatia; Justin Taliaferro and wife Corrie of Nashville, Tennessee; Scott Fletcher and wife Kelli of Keller, Texas; Karen Smith and husband Shane of Belton, TX; and ten grandchildren: Ryan Taliaferro, Megan Taliaferro, Macy Taliaferro, Matt Fletcher, Ethan Fletcher, Caden Fletcher, William Taliaferro, Bella Smith, Gunnar Smith and Callie Smith.
Gary was a member of the 1958 graduating class of Northside High School in Fort Worth. He attended Abilene Christian College majoring in business. During those years he met the love of his life Kay Allen and they were married on June 22, 1962. He then tried his hand at Life Insurance and Real Estate again in the Fort Worth area, however his heart was being called in another direction. In 1964 Gary and Kay headed back to Abilene for Gary to pursue a Masters Degree in New Testament. With a growing passion for ministry preparation he moved on to Southwest Theological Seminary to pursue a Masters of Divinity. During this time they worked at a small congregation in Lueders, TX which he would think back on fondly for the rest of his ministry career. Upon completion of this time of study they accepted an offer to preach at a congregation in a small bedroom city south of Houston and next door to the new Johnson Space Center, the Friendswood Church of Christ. It was here that Gary began to develop his own personal identity as a preacher, pastor and church-builder who was intimately involved in the lives of the congregation as well as the community.
While the ministry in Friendswood was sweet and in many ways successful, the Lord had other plans. The family moved to Central Church of Christ in Irving, TX. After a brief ministry there he decided to try something new and in 1976 moved the family which included Anthony, Steven and Justin at that time to Stephenville,TX and pursue and a career as a farrier and rancher. This was followed by a brief but intense year of owning and operating a Ralston Purina Feed Dealership in Denton, TX.
Through it all Gary was growing as a person and follower of Christ and in a way that only God could design, and in 1980 the church in Friendswood invited him and Kay to come back and renew their relationship. This became a great time for the church and the family. Particularly, Scott and Karen Fletcher joined the family as the fourth son and first daughter in 1996. This time in Friendswood opened the door for him to serve in an even wider way in the community including serving on the School Board from 1982-1988. Gary also stepped out and began the pursuit of a Doctor of Ministry Degree at Drew University and qualification as a Licensed Pastoral Counselor. This eventually led him away from full-time preaching and into establishing a Christian Counseling Center in Friendswood which still operates today.
He and Kay moved to Belton, TX in 2003 to “retire”, but he was called back into service to help the Belton Church of Christ during a time of transition. While that ministry role was short, many in Belton still speak of Gary’s visits and pastoral care.
Behind his love for Christ, Kay and his family, Gary loved horses and riding. It grabbed him while he was very young and continued until his health failed him just a few short years ago. He was an avid reader and drank deeply from many facets of theology and spiritual development, and also had a great love of the novels of Louis L’amour.
He is loved and appreciated by countless individuals whose walk in life and journey of faith were powerfully impacted by his pastoral care and insight. Many regarded him and Kay as “surrogate” parents. He lived his life fully trusting in the reality of life, death and especially the resurrection of Jesus. Since her death he longed to be reunited with Kay and placed his greatest hopes in the promise that their eternity would be with God.
