Dec 26, 2018
Pastor Rodney Henry passed away on October 24, 2018, at the Denver Hospice after a long three-year period of illness. Rod is survived by his wife of 47 years, Camille Henry; three children and their spouses: Tanya and Bryan McPherson; Erik and Mandy Henry; Edward and Hannah Henry; a brother, Randy Henry; 10 grandchildren, and nieces and nephews.
Pastor Rod served in the U.S. Air Force for 4 years as a Russian linguist. Upon completion of his service, Rod returned home to San Pedro, CA, where he began working at the Department Of Water & Power. Soon after, he met Camille. Rod and Camille were married in Rod’s parents’ home on April 2, 1971. They attended the Los Angeles Seventh Day Baptist church and were members. In the summer of 1973, they felt God’s call to ministry and joined the group, Lightbearers For Christ. They toured the country performing evangelistic concerts and seeing many come to Christ until November of 1974. It was time to start a family and Camille was pregnant with Tanya.
On their return to San Pedro, they stayed with Rod’s parents while Rod returned to the University of California at Long Beach to complete his bachelor’s degree in Speech Communication in June 1976, in preparation for applying to seminary. Rod applied and was accepted at Fuller Theological Seminary and began his studies there in the fall of 1976. While at seminary, they added Erik to their family. Rod and Camille lived in student housing in Pasadena, close to the Fuller campus. Rod graduated from Fuller in June of 1979. During his second year, Rod and Camille felt God calling them to the mission field. After much prayer, they felt the field was to be in the Philippines. They wrote Rev. Leon Lawton, of the SDB Missionary Society, inquiring as to possible ministry in the Philippines. He wrote back immediately, stating that they had just had contact with a group in the Philippines who were looking for a missionary to help them grow their churches. There it was—the confirmation they needed! So, for the last 1½ years of seminary, they worked on getting prepared for the mission field while Rod completed his Master of Divinity Degree.
They left for Cebu City, the Philippines, November 1, 1979. Rod and Camille served from 1979 to 1983. They took a one year sabbatical wherein Rod returned to Fuller Seminary to complete the two-year course for a Masters of Theology in Missiology—he completed it in one year from September 1983 to May 1984. Now, it was time to return to the Philippines with the goal of setting up training for the SDBs there to continue the work. Rod’s master’s thesis focused on theological education by extension. This became the basis for his return and final work with the Filipino pastors. Rod and Camille returned to Cebu City in August 1984, and remained until May 1985, when the work was done and the local leaders had taken the lead.
Rod went on to take a position at the SDB Center, where he became the Director of Outreach, then took on Director of Extension using the materials for the program he developed in the Philippines to train pastors (Theological Education by Extension —”TEE”). He modified it and brought theological education to those who were called to ministry but had neither the time nor the resources to go to seminary. This program placed pastors in churches who had no pastors and it helped to plant new churches. In January 1988, Rod was asked to become the Director of Pastoral Services for the Council on Ministry. He accepted that position and continued the TEE training. The position of Director of Extension was eventually passed on to Rev. Russell Johnson in July 1990. Rod developed multiple programs: More 2000, Pastoral Counselling, and Conflict Management—all of which he brought to the churches in the U.S. He travelled extensively nationwide, teaching and ministering and helping churches who were struggling. In addition, Rod also began sending the TEE program to Africa, South America, and Serbia. He travelled extensively all over the world helping other groups to set up training in their own languages so they could provide pastoral leadership for their churches.
In 1999, Rod resigned as Director of Pastoral Services, and accepted the pastorate at the Denver SDB Church (renamed The Next Step Christian Church in 2010) where he pastored full time until 2016. Rod had mentored five young men through seminary in Denver. The final person he mentored, he also trained to be the pastor of the Denver SDB Church—Pastor Dustin Mackintosh. In 2016, Pastor Dusty took over as lead pastor, and Rod stepped down, continuing to do counselling, mentoring, and general spiritual support for many in and outside the church. In August 2018, when Pastor Rod became too ill to continue any work for the church, he resigned his position as Assistant Pastor.
Rod touched many lives, and has reaped his reward of “well done, good and faithful servant.” He sits before Jesus, listening to Him as intently as he listened to Jesus in Scripture here on this earth. A memorial service was held at The Next Step Christian Church in Thornton, CO, on October 27, 2018, led by Pastor Dusty Mackintosh and Pastor Steve Osborn.