Retired Covenant pastor Ted Smith of Sacramento, California, died August 29, 2026. He was 83.
Theron “Ted” LaVern Smith Jr. was born March 25, 1943, to parents Theron and Arlene Smith in Wichita, Kansas. Ted accepted Christ at the age of twelve and became active in the church’s youth program, Youth For Christ Bible quizzing, and the high school Bible Club. He graduated from West High School in Wichita in 1961.
Ted attended Friends University in Wichita, graduating with honors in 1965 with a bachelor of arts degree and a double major in Bible and speech and dramatics.
On July 28, 1963, Ted married Glenda Ruth Pomeroy in Wichita in front of friends and family. Their union produced three children: Cheri Ruth, Todd LaVern, and Jesse LaVern.
Ted was ordained in 1965 through Calvary Bible Chapel with the Independent Fundamental Churches of America. In 1981 he transferred his ordination to the Evangelical Covenant Church. Through continuing education throughout the 1980s and ’90s, Ted studied at Fuller Theological Seminary, Simpson College, and North Park Theological Seminary. Together, he and Glenda served in a variety of ministries, including with Youth For Christ in Wichita, as well as in Stockton and Sacramento, California. He also served as Youth For Christ regional field director for the Pacific Southwest Region from 1974 to 1981.
In May 1981, Ted accepted a call as senior pastor of First Covenant Church of Sacramento, California (now known as River City Christian Church in Rancho Cordova), where he served faithfully for more than thirty years. Ted also served on various Covenant boards, including the executive board for the Pacific Southwest Conference and the board of World Mission.
Ted was a gifted evangelist and used his imagination to attract, entertain, and compel high school students into discovering a relationship with Jesus. Gary Fox collaborated with Ted during his early days serving with Youth For Christ, and he described the elaborate “wild goose chase” events Ted would stage, with hundreds of students packed into buses, crisscrossing through various neighborhoods of the city with “secret agents” placed at different places that would require students to solve puzzles, do exercises, and discover more clues. The kids would be so into it that the buses would be flying in and out of various locations, all trying to be the first to find the goose. At the end of the day, Ted would give an invitation and pass out cards for students to ask questions about how Jesus could impact their lives, which Ted and other staffers would collect and use to make follow-up calls and appointments. He would go to extraordinary lengths to show young people that they were valuable and loved.
Ted is survived by his wife, Glenda, and his three children, Cheri Coulter, Todd Smith, and Jesse Smith.
A celebration-of-life service was held at River City Christian on September 26, 2026, and is available for viewing on the church’s YouTube channel.
Peace be to his memory.
