LITTLE ROCK — Josh Joyner was happiest fishing on the Little Red River. But on Saturday mornings, nothing was better than watching Looney Tunes with his 3-year-old son, Sam.
“He always made sure there was time for him and Sam no matter what was going on,” said his wife, Megan Joyner. “They had their own little hand gesture. They had a fist bump, and they’d open their hands to explode.”
Joshua Doyle Joyner of Beebe died Monday at St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center in Little Rock from cancer.
He was 30.
Growing up in Heber Springs, Joyner was a Boy Scout and earned the rank of Eagle Scout by helping the local First United Methodist Church create a more handicappedfriendly parking lot, said his mother, Terrie Joyner.
“He was very conscientious of people less fortunate than himself,” his mother said.
Joyner stayed active in Boy Scouts as an adult, often teaching the young boys about nature, his wife said.
“One of his big things was teaching people how to take care of the outdoors and use it properly,” Megan Joyner said. “Forest conservation was his thing.”
In 2000, he graduated from Heber Springs High School, earning a band scholarship to the University of Arkansas at Monticello. While in college, he proposed to Megan at Bridal Veil Falls in Heber Springs.
“He proposed to me under a waterfall. I thought he was joking,” said his wife. They married in 2006. “He said he wanted to be with his best friend.”
After earning a business degree, he worked as a senior budget analyst at the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.
“He balanced the budgets of several state agencies and made sure they used their funds appropriately and correctly,” his wife said. “He liked to solve problems.”
In his free time, he enjoyed hiking throughout the Ozarks and trout fishing on his beloved Little Red River.
“Anytime he saw trash in the river, he’d go over and make sure he picked it up,” Megan Joyner said.
For several years, he was a fishing guide for Lindsey’s Resort.
“You’re basically in a boat with someone for eight hours, so you have to be able to talk and be able to catch fish,” said friend, Jared Lindsey. “And the good ones, like Josh, have happy customers even if the fishing isn’t good.”
Joyner did anything for a smile or a laugh, from dressing up as Santa Claus for his young relatives or as a scantily clad bunny for Halloween.
“One year, he dressed up as a Playboy bunny in college,” his wife said. “One of his friends, who was a girl, was Hugh Hefner. He wasn’t scared to try something new, he liked to be goofy.”
A dedicated dad, he loved sharing his passions with his son.
“He couldn’t wait to show him how to throw a baseball correctly, how to cast his fly rod,” Megan Joyner said. “He already taught Samuel how to bait fish [hooks], he was very excited about that.”
In the fall of 2010, doctors discovered several rare, cancerous tumors in Joyner’s body.
“We tried seven or eight different chemo plans,” his wife said. “Surgery was never an option because the doctor said with his type of cancer, it would be like ‘trying to take confetti out of glue.’ It was just impossible.”
Despite his deteriorating health, he worked until last September and held tightly to his Baptist faith.
“He kept a little wooden cross ... made out of driftwood from the river. He kept that in his pocket,” his wife said. “He would tell me it was going to be OK and that he was still [going to be] there.”
Arkansas, Pages 8 on 01/03/2013