Joni Lamb obit

 

Joni Lamb, Influential Christian Leader and Daystar Television Network Co-Founder, Dies at 65

She was not on the list.

Joni Lamb, president and co-founder of Daystar Television Network, has died, the network announced Thursday. She was 65.

In a statement released May 7, Daystar said Lamb “has gone home to be with the Lord” following serious health complications that worsened in recent days.

According to the network, Lamb had been privately battling significant health issues before suffering a recent back injury that intensified her medical condition.

Prior to her recent back injury, Lamb had been dealing with serious health matters that she chose to face head on and in private. The back injury compounded those challenges and led to a more serious medical situation than anyone had anticipated. Despite the dedicated efforts of her medical team and the prayers of so many around the world, her condition worsened in the last few days.

Lamb founded Daystar with her late husband, Marcus Lamb, in 1993. What began as a local Christian television station eventually grew into one of the largest Christian television networks in the world, reaching audiences globally through satellite, cable, streaming and digital platforms.

Over nearly four decades in ministry broadcasting, Lamb became one of the most recognizable faces in Christian television, hosting programs, interviewing ministry leaders and helping shape the direction of faith-based media.

The Daystar Board of Directors praised her lasting spiritual legacy and commitment to ministry.

Joni’s love for the Lord and for the people we serve shaped this ministry from the beginning. We grieve her loss, and we are grateful for the legacy of faith she leaves behind.”

The network also emphasized that Daystar’s mission and programming will continue moving forward. According to the statement, Lamb had already worked with leadership to establish an executive team capable of carrying on the ministry without interruption.

Daystar’s mission does not change today. Previously, Lamb worked with the board to ensure an executive leadership team was in place so that the ministry would continue uninterrupted. Programming will proceed as scheduled, with on-air tributes to follow in the coming days.

The family requested prayers and privacy during this time. Memorial service information is expected to be announced later.

During this time, lift up Lamb’s family in this moment of grief.

Joni Trammell was born in Colleyville, Texas, in 1960. She was raised in Greenville, South Carolina. Her family were members of the Tremont Avenue Church of God, where Marcus Lamb ministered as a visiting preacher during a revival. The couple met each other at her home church and were married two years later, in 1982. They traveled for the next few years, visiting churches as evangelists.

In 1984, Joni and Marcus Lamb settled in Montgomery, Alabama where they purchased a full power television station and began teaching the Bible on broadcast television. This continued until 1990, when the couple moved to Dallas and formed another station in the larger Texas market. By 1998, they had raised the funds necessary to start Daystar.

Lamb hosted her self-titled half-hour program Joni Table Talk (initially titled Joni) each weekday on Daystar. The format of the show was typically a round table discussion with other ministers, singers and celebrities discussing a wide range of topics that combine contemporary cultural issues and the Christian faith. In 2004, the show was awarded as the Best Television Talk Show by the National Religious Broadcasters.

Lamb co-hosted the Daystar flagship program Ministry Now! (previously called, Marcus and Joni and initially titled Celebration). The hour-long program was broadcast five days a week on their Daystar network. Joni's children shared host duties and discuss news related to the network, ministry, and issues of interest to the Christian faith with daily guest(s). Joni and her daughters would also perform with the Daystar Singers during the Daystar program.

On June 10, 2023, Joni Lamb married Doug Weiss. Weiss is a television co-host, author and psychologist. At the time of her death, Lamb owned four houses in Texas, a home in Georgia and a beach condominium in Miramar Beach, Florida.

Lamb died on May 7, 2026, at her home in Bedford, Texas, from complications of a back injury, at the age of 65.