Rev. Roland Hayes Crowder, Sr.

At the age of three weeks old, one wintry night in January 1926, a Mrs. Fisher, wife of the late Rev. C. C. Fisher, an associate minister of Shiloh Baptist Church in Cleveland, brought to the Prayer Meeting a tiny, scrawny baby boy who needed a home. No one was willing to take the child. But after Mrs. Emma Griggs arrived home she called her sister, Mrs. Rena Hamilton, and said, "Sister, I'm going to take that little baby!" At hearing this Mrs. Hamilton said, "are you crazy?" Mrs. Griggs replied "No, I'm going to get him!" Her sister asked "...what are you going to name him? ... Why not Roland Hayes?" So, he became Roland Hayes Griggs - the child of Rev. and Mrs. Edward E. Griggs.

As fate would have it, in May 1931 Mother Griggs passed away at Charity Hospital in Cleveland. Not long afterwards Roland's father became a stroke victim. Roland was up for adoption again, but the Lord stepped in again and Mr. and Mrs. Will Crowder who lived across the street became his parents. (Roland had served as the ring bearer in their wedding in 1930) Will Crowder had his own Ice and Coal Delivery business with a horse drawn wagon. But as the Cleveland winters became too severe, Will decided (in 1934) to move his family to Birmingham, Alabama (Mason City) where he owned property. Roland spent much of his childhood in Mason City.

In 1936 tragedy struck again when Roland's father Will Crowder died in the VA Hospital in Tuskegee. Roland went on to graduate from Rosedale High School in 1944 and joined the U. S. Navy where he served for two years. Upon returning home to Mason City, he returned to Cleveland and was later joined there by his mother who lived with him from 1956 until her death in 1966. During his early orphaned childhood Roland became a member of God's family. In Cleveland The Lord gave him a biological family and an extended church family - first at East Mt. Zion then at Second Calvary. God does truly work in mysterious ways - His wonders to perform.

In July 1950 Roland Hayes Crowder answered a Divine call to the ministry of Jesus Christ. He preached his initial sermon November 8, 1950 and was licensed by the East Mt. Zion Baptist Church under the direction of pastor, the late Dr. W. M. Downs. On November 28, 1950, Dr. Downs called a council for the purpose of ordination, which was organized by the late Dr. R. M. Caver. The council ordained Rev. Crowder to serve as the assistant pastor of the New Commandment Baptist Church where the late Rev. H. F. Dawson was the pastor. In 1960 Rev. Crowder returned to East Mt. Zion and later was appointed as assistant to the pastor where he served until being called to Pastor Second Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in 1965 - serving faithfully until his retirement at the end of 2013.

Visitation was the hallmark of his ministry. He demonstrated untiring devotion and sincere compassion for the sick and shut-in, the bereaved as well as the incarcerated. He always attributed the growth and expansion of Second Calvary and its ministries to the Help of God and the prayers of the saints and the congregation who labored faithfully - which included the building of a new structure at a cost of approximately one million dollars as well as the total renovation of the original building at a cost of $490,000 so that it could be used as a multipurpose facility.

Although a native Clevelander, Pastor Crowder received most of his early education in the Jefferson County Schools of Birmingham, Alabama. He holds degrees from Malone College and Ashland Theological Seminary.

For 32 years Pastor Crowder served in the United States Postal Service from which he retired in 1981 as Tour Superintendent.

Dr. Crowder loved to travel, and he was a regular at the Sunday School Congress as well as the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. annual sessions as well as other state, local and national meetings. In 1999 he traveled throughout South Africa with a group from the Foreign Mission Board and in 2000 he attended the 18th Baptist World Alliance in Melbourne, Australia. However, his greatest joy was attending the annual all classes reunion of his beloved Rosedale in Birmingham whenever he could - as long as he could.

On October 18, 1947, he was married to Doris Grace Felton and until her death in 1996 and in March 1997 he was married to Ida B. Cook until her death in 2012.

He is also predeceased by his sister Constance Helen Gray and a son Phillip Cheston Crowder.

Rev. Dr. Roland Hayes Crowder will be sorely missed by his children Roland H. Jr. (Gwendolyn), Lydia Grace, Roslind Denise, Hiram Felton (B. Machelle deceased); grandchildren Lia, Layanna (Lee Sr.), Roslind (Peaches), Kayla and Michael (Shenee); 8 great-grandchildren and 3 great-great-grandchildren.