March 1 Today in OPC History

Happy birthday to Garry Hoogerhyde! Garry and his wife, Marlene, were introduced to the Orthodox Presbyterian Church through the ministry of the Rev. LeRoy Oliver at Grace OPC in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Every Tuesday evening for six months, Pastor Oliver visited Garry and Marlene explaining the OPC to both of them and the Reformed faith to Marlene. Encouraged by the biblical fidelity of what they heard, they joined Grace Church. Two years after joining, Garry was ordained and installed as a ruling elder at Grace Church. Soon thereafter, Mr. Oliver accepted a called to serve as Associate General Secretary of the Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension (CHMCE). At the Twenty-Fifth (1958) General Assembly, Mr. Oliver nominated Garry for the CHMCE Committee and the body also appointed Garry to serve as a founding member of the Committee on Pensions. He would serve on CHMCE for 56 of the next 62 years and on the Committee on Pensions for the entirety of the 58 years of that committee's existence. Always willing to serve the church, Garry stepped out of retirement in 2019 after the death of his dear friend David Haney to serve as the interim Director of Finance for the OPC.

Picture: Garry and Marlene Hoogerhyde on their wedding day