Reverend Dr. George E. Barton

On November 8th, 2016, the Lord called Reverend Dr. George E. (Ted) Barton: Loving and devoted husband, father, grand-father, great grand-father and Uncle home to be with his Lord. Ted was 82 and a native of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was the son of the late Clarence and Ruth (Watkins) Barton. He graduated from Riverside Collegiate Institute. He attended University of Toronto Schools and obtained his BA from the University of Toronto. He received his Master’s in Mediterranean Studies at Brandeis University. He obtained his Doctor of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. One of his greatest joys was mentoring students as a Professor and the Dean of Central Baptist Seminary in Toronto. He taught several classes including “Life of Christ”, “Acts to Revelation” and the ancient languages including Greek, Aramaic and Hebrew. He was the former Senior Pastor at Bayview Baptist Church, North York, Ontario; Wilmar Heights Baptist Church, Scarborough, Ontario; Fellowship Baptist Church, Port Perry, Ontario and retired from full-time ministry after 15 year as Senior Pastor of Fairview Heights Baptist Church, Portsmouth, Virginia. In his retirement he taught part-time for Providence Bible College and Theological Seminary as well as John Leland Center for Theological Studies.
His memory will be cherished by his wife of 62 years- Margaret Ellen (Ware) Barton, son Stephen and his wife Danielle (Gervais), son Andrew and daughter Colleen and her husband Dan (Naumann), grand-children, Tiffany, Brant, Kandyce, Haley, Beth and Luke and great-grandson Ryley, nieces and nephews Cynthia, David and Ruth and many other loving family members. Ted was preceded in death by his parents Clarence and Ruth Barton and his brother Dr. Bob Barton of Baden Ontario.
He loved to tell when prompted the story of how he chose his profession. As a young man he was recruited by the Toronto Maple Leaf farm team to be their first string goalie. At that time he felt God calling him into full-time ministry and turned the offer down and instead enrolled in Seminary. It was at Moody Bible Institute he met his beloved “southern belle” Margaret. Ted’s greatest joy was pointing others to Jesus not only in his profession but in his daily walk. He was an encourager, an innovator, an educator and a truly loving, kind and honest man. His friends and family always knew they were loved unconditionally. His goal was to demonstrate the Heavenly Father’s love in God’s strength in all things. He would often say “It’s our job to carry the cross of Jesus daily”. He lived it, breathed it and taught it. He loved to laugh and was able to laugh at his own idiosyncrasies. One of his greatest sources of joy was when his Seminary students would spoof him. He loved being with his family and involved them in every aspect of his life. Those memories will be cherished always. He would want to be remembered as a Follower of his Lord and his Savior, for his leadership, laughter and love and that will be his legacy.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Heritage Baptist College and Heritage Theological Seminary 175 Holiday Inn Dr. Cambridge Ontario, Canada N3C 3T2