Martin Eugene Elder, former pastor and Southern Baptist missionary, died Nov. 4. He was 85. Raised in Kentucky, Elder earned a bachelor’s degree from Howard College (now Samford University) and a master of divinity degree from New Orleans Seminary. He accepted his first pastorate, Pheba Baptist Church in Mississippi, and two years later he became a home missionary for the Home Mission Board (now North American Mission Board) in New Mexico.
He led Laguna and Acoma Native Americans in Cubero before serving as pastor of the Baptist Indian Mission in Santa Fe. From 1968 to 1987, he ministered on the pastoral staff of First Baptist Church Grants and as pastor of White Rock Baptist Church and FBC Aztec.
Commissioned by the International Mission Board in 1987, Elder first served in East London as a church planter/developer for nine years, and later in Cape Town, South Africa, where he directed theological education by extension for three years.
After retirement to Alabama in 2001, Elder taught Sunday School for several years before becoming pastor of Sardis Baptist Church, Greenville, for eight years. He preached his farewell sermon September 2019 at age 83. Survivors include his wife, Ellamae; children David, Joy and Timothy; 12 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren.
Share with others: