Memorial: Richard Thornton MicIntosh

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Mar 2001

Richard Thornton McIntosh was born on April 22, 1930, in Norwalk, Ohio, the second of the two children born to William A. and Ruth C. (Gilbert) McIntosh. After his father's passing in 1934, Richard and his sister Moya were reared by their mother during the depths of the depression. Richard trusted Christ as Savior through the outreach of Calvary Baptist Church (GARBC) of Norwalk, Ohio, at the age of nine. Even before he was graduated from high school, Richard sensed his call to the ministry and was actively involved as leader of the youth group at Calvary Baptist where he spoke numerous times.

At Bryan College Richard majored in English and was actively involved in Christian service, even serving as president of the local Child Evangelism Fellowship. During his sophomore year, Richard met Barbara Ellen Becker as they washed dishes together on a work scholarship. They were married on September 15, 1951 at Grace Brethren Church in Troy, Ohio. One year later, Richard received his B.A. degree and began a two-year pastorate at Barbara's home church, Grace Brethren of Troy, while also working in a factory to support their growing family. Richard II was born in Troy in 1952 and Kathryn Sue joined them there in 1954.

From Troy, the family moved to Indiana and accomplished several important things. Richard enrolled in the B.D. program at Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Indiana, but lived in Tippecanoe where he also pastored the Congregational Christian Church from 1954-58. After Michael Thomas was born in 1958, and Richard had finished seminary, the family moved to Lima, Ohio, where Richard pastored the Northside Baptist Church from 1958-60. John Mark joined the family there in 1959.

Receiving a call from Cedarville College in 1960, Richard took up responsibilities as Dean of Students and part-time English teacher. He also developed the Christian service program and oversaw financial aid and campus security. In 1970, Richard resigned and began Th.D. work at Grace Theological Seminary, commuting with another Cedarville faculty member. Completing most of his residency, Richard returned to Cedarville College as associate professor of Bible, but also taught some doctrine, philosophy, missions, Christian education and Greek. He continued at Cedarville for the next fourteen years and led mission trips to Australia for five weeks in 1979 and to Togo, West Africa, in 1982.

From 1984-90, Richard pastored the Bible Baptist Church of Kokomo, Indiana, and then the First Baptist Church of Galion, Ohio, from 1990 until his retirement in 1998. Richard's health began to deteriorate in the 1980s, and he had angioplasty in 1986. It grew worse as the years progressed, and he later developed diabetes. After a massive heart attack, Richard passed into the presence of the Lord on April 7, 2000, at the Kettering Hospital in Dayton, Ohio. His funeral was held at Grace Baptist Church of Cedarville, where Richard had lived and served for so many years. He is buried next to the Cedarville University campus in North Cemetery, so as he expressed it, he could "keep an eye on the dormitories."

Richard's life lacked just fifteen days of reaching three-score and ten years. He and Barbara were married for over forty-nine years. Richard loved gardening, walking, traveling, and reading, especially JETS. He had been a member of the Evangelical Theological Society since his student days at Grace, for more than forty years.

Richard is survived by his wife Barbara of Xenia, Ohio; his son, Richard II, and his wife, Margaret, of Orange, CA: his daughter, Kathryn, and her husband, Jack Gorby, of Fairborn, OH; his son, Michael, and his wife, TeriJo, of Cedarville, OH; his son, John Mark, and his wife, Danette, of Helena, MT; nine grandchildren and three great grandchildren; and his sister, Moya, and her husband, Glen Hamer, of Camden, AR.