David Wyatt Croy

David Wyatt Croy

David Wyatt Croy, 74, of Medford, died Sunday, November 11, 2007, at his home surrounded by his family.

A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, November 17, 2007, at First Baptist Church, where he served as pastor for 30 years.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to First Baptist Church, 649 Crater Lake avenue, Medford.

Pastor Croy was born in 1933 in Shorewood, Wis. His parents were Daisy Wyatt Croy and Harry Croy, a newspaper reporter in Madison. After high school, David attended Wisconsin State Teachers College. From 1953 to 1955, he served in the U.S. Army's 101st "Screaming Eagles" Airborne Division based in Camp Breckinridge, Ky. He sent Morse code for the 4th Signal Corps in Germany during the Korean Conflict. While overseas, he met Jesus, his Savior.

After his military service ended, he moved to Monterey and sold shoes for Sears Roebuck and Co., where he met his bride, Wanda Messer Croy, and they married on December 10, 1955. David continually wanted to know more of the Scriptures and when he saw an advertisement stating; "If it's Bible you want, then you want Multnomah," they moved to Portland. Their first two children were born, Dwight and Debbie, during his Bible college years. In his nearly 40 years of ministry, he preached about 4,000 sermons, married nearly 190 couples and performed 300 funerals. His first pastorate was a Lafayette Baptist, situated between Newberg and McMinnville; David and Wanda had two more children there, Becky and Candi. During his tenure, the church grew from three families to 70 members in a town of just 300 people. Pastor Croy knocked on most every door, some more than once, inviting people to church. In 1962, he became the pastor of Bible Baptist Church in Astoria, where daughter Tami was born. His next pastorate was at North Albany Baptist Church. Son Stephen was born in Corvallis.

In 1969, David was called to First Baptist Church in Medford, where he stayed until his retirement in 1999. During his tenure, First Baptist Church started Grace Christian School, which has now grown into three schools, including a high school of 315 students. As attendance swelled, the church added a gymnasium, Sunday school classrooms and fellowships halls. For much of his career, he preached on the radio and in the early 1980s, church services were broadcast on a local television station. As part of the care of his flock, he sent birthday cards and personally signed each with his favorite verse, Philippians 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice." He influenced and encouraged dozens of people to enter the ministry, including his son, Dwight, an Army chaplain, and nephew, Daren, a Cascade High School teacher.

Pastor Croy loved to read and built a large library. He started a candlelight service on Christmas Eve called "Gifts of Joy" in which the congregation brought monetary gifts to encourage the pastors of small, rural churches. He was inducted into Delta Epsilon Chi Honor Society of the American Association of Bible Colleges on May 16, 1980. He enjoyed walking through the streets of Medford praying for his congregation and others. He also found Indian Mary Park and hiking Indian Joe Trail in Josephine County to be a respite from the demands of his calling. He and Wanda vacationed often in Monterey, where they walked on the beach. Pastor Croy's favorite holiday was Thanksgiving, which he always set aside as a time for his family. He was a lifelong Green Bay Packer fan and he collected nutcrackers, which were displayed in his windows every Christmas.

In addition to his wife of 52 years, he is survived by six children; 15 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. His family is: Dwight David Croy, wife, Karen, of Fort Lewis, Wash. and children, Amber and Jonathan; Debbie May Boyle and husband David, of Tualatin, and son, Zachary; Becky Sue Chase and husband Sean of Longview, Wash., and children Marie and Stephen; Candi Kay Galbreath and husband, Ron, of Medford, and children Crystal, Silver, Tiffany and David; Tami Marie Daulton and husband, David, of Medford, and children Joshua and Jacob; and Stephen Wyatt Croy and wife, Mary, of Medford and children Lauren, Stephanie, Wyatt and Macie.

He is survived by sisters, Ann Croy of Ashland, and Jean Kleinman, of San Antonio, Texas.

He was preceded in death by his brother, Harry Croy.