Boyd Ralph Ferguson, 98, passed away peacefully at his home in Greenville, Texas on Thursday, November 16, 2023, with his family by his side. A funeral service will be held on Saturday, November 25, 2023, at 11:00 am in the chapel of Coker-Mathews Funeral Home, with Rev. Dr. Matthew Thomas officiating. Visitation will be held at the funeral home from 10:00 am until service time. Graveside services will be held in the Sulphur Springs City Cemetery immediately following the 11:00 am service.
Boyd was born August 19, 1925, to Louis Jackson Ferguson and Martha Ruth (Sherman) Ferguson, at the home on his family’s farm in the Rock Creek Community east of Sulphur Springs in Hopkins County, Texas. He graduated from Sulphur Springs High School in 1943.
As a young man coming of age during World War II, Boyd was exempt from the U.S. military draft due to a childhood accident that left him blind in his left eye. As he learned some friends and neighbors serving in Europe and the Pacific would never be coming home, he felt it was his duty to volunteer for military service. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in April of 1944. He served as a medic with the 179th General Hospital in Rouen, France. After the war ended, he continued his service as a medic with various U.S. Army general and field hospitals in Nuremberg, Regensberg, and Engelstadt, Germany, returning home to Sulphur Springs in June of 1946.
Boyd married the love of his life, Lois Elizabeth McLaughlin, on August 18, 1948, in Sulphur Springs, Texas. They enjoyed almost 73 years of marriage before she went home to be with the Lord in July of 2021.
After being a farmer and dairyman for several years, Boyd began work at Temco in Greenville as an aircraft mechanic in 1952, retiring from Raytheon in 1985. He took great pride in his job there and in the fact that for ten years he performed maintenance on Air Force One, a part of the US presidential air transport fleet. After retirement, Boyd loved growing lots of vegetables in his large home garden so he would have plenty to give away. Bird watching was another favorite hobby.
In 1964, Boyd was ordained as a Deacon in the First Baptist Church of Sulphur Springs, where he was a member and taught youth Sunday School and Training Union classes for over thirty years. After moving to Greenville in 1993, he was a faithful member of Ridgecrest Baptist Church, where he taught the three-year-old children in Sunday School for many years. One of the greatest joys of his life was teaching children about the Bible and Jesus’ love for them.
Boyd was an unsung hero, always thinking of others first, helping them in any way possible, and changing lives in ways we will never know. He enjoyed playing with his grandkids and taking them on camping trips to nearby state parks, but he really liked nothing better than being at home with his family around him and listening to the sound of the little ones playing. Next to his Christian faith and his love for Jesus, Boyd’s family was the most important thing in his life.
Boyd is survived by four daughters: Beth Clifton and husband Jim, of Whitehouse, Texas; Paula Brinkley and husband Lannis, of Ardmore, Oklahoma; Dianna Mitchell and husband Larry, of Quitman, Texas; and Jan Weddle and husband Robert, of Greenville, Texas; ten grandchildren, to whom he was “Foy”: Calinda Lucas and husband William, of Fort Worth, Texas; Catherine Gaertner and husband John, of Whitehouse, Texas; Dr. Candace Livingston and husband Todd, of Greenville, South Carolina; Justin Mitchell and wife Aulbry, of Mineola, Texas; Christina Thomas and husband Rev. Dr. Matthew Thomas, of Frankston, Texas; Lori Williams and husband Scott, of Mineola, Texas; Celia Arthur and husband Kevin, of Trophy Club, Texas; Meridith Ferguson and husband Britt, of Vernon, Texas; Rebecca Jones and husband Dr. Nathan Jones, of Bixby, Oklahoma; David Brinkley and wife Vanya, of Tulsa, Oklahoma; fourteen great-grandchildren: Cade Mitchell and wife Megan, Kyle Williams and wife Kendyl, Grace Gaertner, Makayla Mitchell, Noah Thomas, Cash Williams, William Lucas, Jr., Elizabeth Gaertner, John Lucas, Emma Thomas, James Lucas, Julianne Jones, Kathryn Jones, and Erica Brinkley; and one great-great-grandchild, Kolten Williams. He is also survived by one sister-in-law, Joyce Bayless of Rockdale, Texas and one brother-in-law, Dr. Paul McLaughlin and wife Mildred, of Douglass, Texas, as well as numerous nieces and nephews whom he loved dearly and spoke of often.
Boyd was preceded in death by his parents; one daughter, Marcia Dawn Ferguson; six sisters: Edna Ferguson, Mary Erspamer, Verdinell Shriver, Evelyn Patman, Bonnie Brazzell, and Bettie May; three brothers: Herbert, Louis, and Glenn Ferguson; and numerous in-laws, nieces, and nephews whom he loved and cherished.
Charitable donations in Boyd’s memory may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a charity that was near and dear to his heart since losing his daughter Marcia when she was three years old.
