Many in mourning over death of downtown FW ‘greeter’

Ten years ago when U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey proposed to his wife, Tonya, on a downtown street corner, one of Fort Worth's most cherished individuals was part of the event.

Charles Joyner, the double amputee known as Fort Worth's unofficial greeter, was in his usual spot on his corner at Third and Houston streets when Tonya showed up to meet her date for dinner at Reata restaurant.

When Veasey arrived shortly afterward to greet Tonya, Joyner told him, "Mister, you should have some flowers for this beautiful young lady."

Veasey, who had just won his first election as state representative, replied, "Yeah, but I don't have any flowers."

Joyner then asked, "Well, do you have a ring?"

"Yes, I have a ring," at which point he proposed.

Tonya Veasey told me that story Saturday morning, three days after I had written a column reporting that Joyner, a downtown fixture for over 20 years, had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

"Marc had set the whole thing up with Charlie," Tonya Veasey said during a chance meeting at our neighborhood cleaners. "And Charlie had his lines down."

Neither of us could have imagined that, as we talked about him, Joyner was literally dying that day.

The Veasey story is one of many that people have shared of the friendly man who smiled, waved and wished "a nice day" to passers-by.