Roy Wilbur Giltner

Roy Wilbur Giltner was born October 2, 1932, to Irwin and Maggie Giltner on their farmstead, Southwest of Brandon, Colorado. Roy was the last of ten children born to this family. He lived in that vicinity until he was about one and one-half years old when the family with six children moved to the San Luis Valley, near the town of Center, Colorado. In 1936, his father bought a farm West of Center, where Roy lived until after he had graduated from high school. He helped his father work on the farm until 1949. In that year his mother, Maggie, passed away from cancer, and his father Irwin, by doctor’s orders, had to move to a lower altitude because of heart and blood pressure problems.

When his father sold the farm to move to live with his daughter, Leila, in Beaver, Oklahoma, Roy convinced his dad to let him stay on the family farm so that he could attend Center High school for his Senior year. At the age of 17, Roy supported himself on the farm by milking 5 cows in the morning and at night. Then he sold milk and cream to the local creamery. He also had about 200 laying hens gathering between 10 and 12 dozen eggs per day, which he also sold to local grocery stores in Center, Del Norte, and Monte Vista.

There were ulterior motives for staying in the area. One was to play on the Center High School basketball team, which he knew would be good and who eventually won the Colorado State Championship in the year 1950. Roy was a starter on this team for every game of his junior and senior years. After he graduated, he worked as a sports newspaper writer for three years for the Center Post Dispatch, and being a great athlete and the love of baseball, he tried out for the New York Giants that same year.

The 2nd motive was that he began to date one of the senior girls and he eventually married EllaRee Gray on February 11, 1951. To this union were born four boys: Gary, Doyle, Randell, and Wesley.

After working for a local farmer, Roy took a correspondence course in television broadcasting and after receiving a graduation certificate, he and his family moved to Amarillo, Texas, where he worked for KGNC as a projectionist. After several months that TV station was sold to another company, and most all of the employees were terminated. After being out of work for several weeks and needing a job to provide income for his family, he went to work for Borden’s Milk Company as a “house to house” sales and delivery person. Oddly enough, it was a job he really liked. He stayed in this profession for the next 19 years, progressing up to a route supervisor. He also held that same position for Creamland Dairies in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

In 1962, the marriage ended in divorce. In the Divorce settlement, Roy was given total custody of his four children, and shortly afterwards, Roy and the boys moved to Wichita, Kansas. It was in Wichita, Kansas, where he met Doris Foster at an information meeting of Solo Parent’s Club. Doris had two children, a daughter Cherie, and a son Michael. So, on March 20,1964, Roy and Doris were married at the Community of Christ Central Congregation in Wichita, combining their families with a total of 6 children.

Roy was baptized into the Community of Christ church in 1966. He was ordained a Priest in 1967, an elder in 1968 and was elected pastor of that congregation in 1969. He held the position of pastor for the next three years. Roy and Doris were Zion’s League leaders, a youth group in the church, for several years also.

In 1982, after three of the six children had graduated from college and three others were now on their own, Roy and Doris, along with Doris’ mother, Elsie Bedwell, made the decision to move to Independence, Missouri. They promptly settled on the E. 39th St Congreagtion for their spiritual needs. Roy worked for General Merchandise Corp as a salesman, serving most of northern and western Missouri. In 1987, he went to work for Lou Richards and his IGA store. He worked there until he retired in the summer of 1994, but then continued as a part-time worker for three more years, finally retiring, for good on his 65th birthday in 1997.

Music was always an integral part of Roy and Doris’ lives. They formed a musical group from their congregation in Wichita and traveled performing many of the latest Bill Gaither songs as well as other Christian music. They also sang in the Messiah Choir for 21 years. The choir went to England and Wales and sang in many of the English Cathedrals. In Wales, the choir sang with a Welch Men’s Chorus, which was the highlight of the trip. In 2000, he and Doris sang with the Messiah choir at Carnegie Hall, in New York City.

Traveling was something Roy loved to do. Some of the other places he and Doris traveled were Scotland, England, the Bahamas, Alaska, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Columbia, and Panama, Aruba and Canada. He visited 10 countries and 37 states in the USA.

His retirement years were very busy. In 2002, he and his wife Doris, were elected to serve as pastors of the E. 39th Street Congreagtion. They worked very hard in this position and served there for four years, until July of 2006. At E. 39th, he served on the building committee, he sang in the choir, he taught classes, many with Doris as a co-teacher, he was active in presiding and preaching and whatever was needed to be done.

In 2010, Roy and Doris moved from their home in Independence to a home in the Courchevel addition of Lee’s Summit. The saddest day of Roy’s life was November 24th, 2019, when his beloved wife Doris passed away at CenterPoint Regional Hospital. Doris’

earthly life had ended and now it was time for her to go and be with the Lord that she loved so much. They had been married for almost 56 years, almost all of it dedicated in service to God and to His church.

Roy was the last of his immediate family to survive. He was proceeded in death by his parents Irwin and Maggie Giltner, and all of his nine siblings. Roy also had two sons that predeceased him in death. Gary who died at the age of 46 in 1998, and Wesley, who died at the age of 55, in 2014. Those left to cherish his memory are Doyle Giltner of Wichita, Kansas, Randy Giltner (Nancy) of Derby, Kansas, Cherie Bliss of Liberty, Missouri, and Michael Foster (Brenda) of Independence, Missouri. He is also survived by five grandchildren, and thirteen great-grandchildren. He will be remembered by many friends and family for years to come. Roy completed his earthly journey on April 5th, 2025.

Donations may be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital or Habitat for Humanity.