Joe Carpenter, who spent 22 years as a Gaston County commissioner, died this week at age 84.
Carpenter was a landscape contractor and a leader in the local Republican party, according to his obituary. He served two stretches representing western Gaston County as a commissioner, from 1988 to 1992 and from 1998 to 2016.
Carpenter was active in economic development, working with the Gaston County Economic Development Corporation, the Charlotte Regional Partnership and the Centralina Council of Governments. The Gaston County Visitor’s Center in Belmont was named for him in 2016.
Carpenter was instrumental in the creation of Gaston Family Health Services Inc. (now Kintegra Health) in 1991, according to a statement from the county. It addressed a local physician shortage and helped alleviate a growing burden on the county’s emergency department.
Carpenter was a lifelong Gaston County resident who was married to his wife, Gloria, for 65 years.
