Remembering Ray Marco
Rev. Ray Marco fell asleep in Christ on January 12, 2023. He was an obedient and faithful servant of the Lord. He established Oak Grove Advent Christian Church in Miami, Florida and served as the church’s pastor for more than 50 years. In 1991, after responding to a request to go to Honduras to pray for a sick person, Ray knew the Lord was calling him to develop a ministry to the people of Honduras. Cristo Salva, a ministry of encouragement to the people of Honduras, was born. Seventeen years later, in 2008, Ray and his wife Ledy were commissioned by ACGC as part-time Associate Missionaries to Honduras. Ray and Ledy continued serving Oak Grove AC Church in Miami and the people of Honduras through Cristo Salva until the day of Ray’s death in early January. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day … ” (2 Timothy 4:7-8).
We also received the following tribute from Pastor Buddy Dowd:
Remembering a Special Friend,
Some people touch our lives and the lives of others like no one else; Ray Marco was one of those. Ray was the best when it came to puns and telling stories. He loved to sing and was part of a quartet at BCC. He loved to laugh and at the same time could be serious. I enjoyed going to his home in Peacedale, Rhode Island and was always made to feel like part of the family. Ray met the first love of his life, Gail Warren, and was married soon after graduating. I know his heart was broken when he lost Gail to cancer. Later the Lord was to bring Ledy to fill that void and to help him in his ministry.
Ray accepted the Miami Advent Christian Church after graduating and served our Lord faithfully there for over 50 years. Ray loved people, and it is no wonder that our Lord called him over 30 years ago to start a mission work in Honduras.
I’m thankful that we were able to keep in contact by talking often on the phone, meeting at General Conference and I am even more thankful that we will be spending eternity together.
There is no telling the number of lives that Ray Marco touched for our Lord. I know he touched mine.
We were so very fortunate to have Pastor Ray for more than 50 years. It was obvious he truly had a close and personal relationship with God. His messages reflected that. He was the most humble, servant oriented person I’ve ever met. He was always ready to go through any doors of opportunity God presented to him. I don’t know of another church that was as service oriented nor another church where the members were so close and prayed for/helped each other. Pastor Ray was always available, no matter how inconvenient, and did many, many things in service to our Father than many people know. Many parishioners kept in touch for years after leaving Oak Grove. The parsonage was home base for teams traveling to Honduras for the quarterly mission trips, former church members, pastors traveling through, etc… It was commonly called The Marco Hotel. He was much loved and has been sorely missed.