‘A mighty warrior for God’: Remembering the life and legacy of Richard Hallock

It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of elder Richard Hallock who served as the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference (KYTN) president from 1992 to 2009. Richard died on April 16, 2023, following a brief stay at the hospital. He was a beloved figure and will be remembered for his unwavering commitment to the ministry of the Church, his love for people, and his faithfulness to God.

Richard was born on June 10, 1944, in Wichita Kansas. He attended Union College to pursue a degree in theology. It was here that he met the love of his life, Connie, on a way to basketball game. The couple got married the summer between their sophomore and junior year of college in 1965. Upon graduation, Richard went to pursue his master’s degree at Andrews University and Connie began her career as a teacher.

Richard and Connie welcomed their oldest son, Kevin, in 1969 and then their second son, Ed, three and a half years later.

“He was a wonderful father,” Connie said. “He was often very busy but always made time for his family. We traveled a lot when [the kids] were little. We had a pop-up camper and just had a lot of fun together. I would say his biggest desire was to see his children and family in heaven.”

All his life, Richard was committed to serving the Church. He served as a pastor in the Missouri Conference and as a ministerial director and president at the Gulf State Conference. In 1992, God called him to serve KYTN as the conference president – an invitation he and his family gladly accepted.

During his 17 years at KYTN, Richard brought upon many positive changes. Not only did the conference grow from about 10,000 members to more than 13,000 members, but it moved to a position of financial strength with 113 percent recommended working capital and no debt. In addition, during these years Indian Creek Camp (ICC) was rebuilt and upgraded with new lodging facilities, state-of-the-art kitchen, dining facility and auditorium.

However, Richard’s greatest impact came from his loving leadership.

“I will always love and admire Richard for seeing something in his pastors that we didn't even see in ourselves,” David Hartman said. Hartman, who is now a professor at Southern Adventist University, worked with Richard for 24 years, both in the Gulf State Conference and KYTN. “I believe I'm partially where I'm at today because of the leadership and the mentoring of my friend Richard. He was confident, visionary, a spiritual leader and a builder of people.”

Hartman recalls Richard’s passion for evangelism. While at KYTN, Richard implemented a “Healthy Church Survey,” in which, through a series of questions, churches identified ways in which they could connect and grow in Jesus, as well as serve their communities for Jesus. According to Terri Jenks, who worked as Richard’s administrative assistant for seven years, Richard was a man after God’s own heart.

“He was a mighty warrior for God,” Jenks said. “It's touching to see our leadership being humble, loving and setting an example. When decisions were being made, he always tried to err on the side of compassion.”

Upon his retirement in 2009, Richard and Connie moved to Collegedale, Tenn. The couple enjoyed traveling, and Richard specially enjoyed gardening. In 2018, Richard had a stroke that left him paralyzed on the right side of his body. The week before he died, Connie recalls him whispering “I love you” as he looked at her.

“Because of the stroke he had difficulty speaking, so that was very special,” Connie said. “If I were to describe our relationship in one sentence, I would say that I’d do it all over again.”