Joni Lamb

Joni Trammell Lamb was born on July 19, 1960, in Colleyville, Texas, and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, where a single evening at a revival service would set the course of her life. At Tremont Avenue Church of God in 1980, she met Marcus Lamb, and together they built something neither could have imagined — a television ministry that would one day reach billions of people around the world. After marrying on August 6, 1982, Joni and Marcus launched their broadcasting journey with WMCF-TV in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1984. In 1993, they moved to Dallas, Texas, and established KMPX-TV 29, the platform from which they co-founded Daystar Television Network in 1998. Under Joni's visionary leadership, Daystar grew into one of the largest Christian television networks on earth, broadcasting across satellite, cable, streaming, and digital platforms to an estimated 2.3 billion homes worldwide. As the public face of Daystar, Joni hosted and executive produced many programs, but her signature series — "Joni Table Talk," which debuted in 2001 — became the heartbeat of her ministry. Known for authentic, unguarded conversations about faith, family, and the storms of life, the show earned 5 Daytime Emmy nominations and 3 Lone Star Emmy Awards, among numerous other honors. She was described by peers as a "General for the kingdom," a strategic leader who moved Christian broadcasting away from polished televangelism and toward transparent, genuine dialogue. When Marcus Lamb died from COVID-19 complications in November 2021 after 39 years of marriage, Joni bore the weight of grief and the weight of leadership simultaneously. She pressed forward, steering Daystar through a season of profound transition. In 2023, she remarried, to Dr. Doug Weiss, and continued hosting and expanding the network's global reach — including the 2026 launch of Daystar Español in Mexico. Joni passed away on May 7, 2026, at her home in Bedford, Texas, at the age of 65, from complications following a back injury. She is survived by her husband, Dr. Doug Weiss, and her three children: Jonathan Lamb, Rachel Lamb Brown, and Rebecca Lamb Weiss, along with their families. She leaves behind a legacy measured not only in broadcast reach, but in the countless lives she touched by simply choosing to be real.