Marva Joe

 Marva Lee Green Joe has joined her husband and her Lord on Thursday, November 25, 2021, at Stillhouse Rehabilitation Facility.  

            The funeral Mass is scheduled for Friday, December 3rd at 11:00 at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in Paris with Father Gavin Vaverek as officiant.  Interment follows at Restlawn Cemetery under the direction of Maxey Funeral Home.

            A visitation is scheduled from 6 to 7 p.m. for Thursday, December 2nd, at the funeral home with a rosary beginning at 7 p.m.  Masks and social distancing are encouraged for both the Mass and visitation.

            Marva was born on December 14, 1937, in Wilmer, Texas to Robert Green and Opal Connelley.  They moved to Roxton soon afterward, where she grew up.  She married Lucius Paul Joe Jr. on December 28, 1963.  Together they had two children, Paul Charles Joe of Paris and Jacqulyn Denise Joe of Sherman. 

            Marva graduated from H.G. Smith High School and attended Paris Junior College.  She and her husband moved to Roxton and then Paris in 1965.  She worked at several jobs, including the County Extension Agency, Meals on Wheels, Kimberly Clark, and Paris ISD. 

            She was an active church member at Our Lady of Victory Church, serving on the Altar Society, the choir, and Youth Group sponsor in her younger years.  Marva also donated her camera skills generously to chronicle the many church events.

            Marva believed it was important to participate in the community. Her activities included the Paris Genealogy Society, the La Belle Parisian Club, leader of the first integrated 4-H group in Lamar County, and Girl Scouts Leader.  She was elected to the Paris ISD school board where she strongly advocated for equal opportunities for all students and especially for greater vocation education options. The City of Paris appointed her to many municipal boards where she was often the only African American serving. 

            Marva’s dedication to civil rights was reflected in her continuous support of the NAACP and its activities. She seldom missed a meeting and loved hearing inspiring speakers at their banquets.  An early board member of the YWCA, Marva worked for integration of the Y’s programs, participating in the InterRacial Dialogue Group in the 1970’s to promote good race relations.  Decades later she co-chaired the Diversity Task Force to help resolve a time of similar racial tension.             

            She has been preceded in death by her husband, Lucius, brother Charles Green, and sisters Ora Nancy Wilson and Sarah Fort.

            Survivors include children Paul and Jacqulyn, grandson Zachary of San Leon, TX, sister Cora Wright of Dallas, and a host of nephews, nieces, great nephews, and great nieces. 

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