Alzheimer’s claims editor, educator Gray

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Elmer Gray, 82, retired editor of the California Southern Baptist and a longtime pastor, educator and author, died Aug. 12 in Vancouver, Wash. Family members said Gray had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Gray became the fifth editor of the California Southern Baptist in January 1974. During his tenure as editor, Gray also wrote “Heirs of Promise,” an authorized history of California Southern Baptists spanning the period from 1940–78. Gray retired as the California Southern Baptist editor in September 1983.

In 1959 Gray became a professor of religious education and extension at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary (GGBTS) in Mill Valley, Calif. He left the seminary for four years to serve as manager of the Sunday School department at the Baptist Sunday School Board (now LifeWay Christian Resources), but returned to GGBTS as dean of the faculty in 1970.