Seventy Year Retrospective. Retro and a Perspective.
Rich Thornton was born in Western Pennsylvania to Lester and Louise Thornton who faithfully served many churches in what is now the Allegheny Region of the CGGC. At an early age, he knew that his passion was to do whatever God called him to do. He graduated from Findlay (Ohio) College, now the University of Findlay, in 1972 with a Political Science Major, History Minor, and certification in Secondary Education. Rich attended the College of Law at Ohio Northern U niversity in Ada, Ohio with plans of becoming a lawyer. After just a couple of terms in Law School, Rich left and soon was on the staff of a church as Youth Director. Rich had done youth ministry in various ways since his teen years through singing in traveling groups to churches and camps. Youth Ministry and the questions that he couldn’t answer led him on the path to Winebrenner Theological Seminary where he graduated in 1978. From there Rich served Lancaster First Church of God as Associate Pastor, Yocumtown Church of God