Gratitude for Ron "Patch the Pirate" Hamilton

by Todd Jones | Assistant Pastor

Ron “Patch the Pirate” Hamilton passed into eternity on April 19, 2023. News outlets like Christianity Today and The Christian Post covered his death.

Morningside has the privilege to help lead the service celebrating Ron’s life (10:30 AM, April 29, Bob Jones University). We also get to broadcast his graveside service on our YouTube channel.

Ron couldn't attend our services for most of his membership, but that didn't keep him from having a large impact on many of us--and many more around the world.

Several members of Ron’s family were a huge blessing at our 2019 Homecoming celebrations. That included Ron’s father-in-law Dr. Frank Garlock, who passed into eternity just a few weeks before Ron did.

We regularly sing several of Ron’s hymns. “Bow the Knee,” “Rejoice in the Lord,” and “My Hope Is Jesus,” come readily to mind, but there are many more. Shelly and Megan, Ron’s wife and daughter, have been a great blessing many times in our music ministry over the last several years.

Our kids have continued to learn Ron’s songs in times like our annual VBS or the 2019 presentation of Patch the Pirate Goes to the Jungle.

And Shelly has been a great blessing through much more than her personal music ministry:

• her Facebook page

• her book about her family’s journey with mental illness

• the interview she did with Pastor Crockett about her book

But for me, the effect of Ron and his music is deeply personal. Unlike Ron’s fellow hymnwriter Chris Anderson, I didn’t come to know Ron’s songs in college. I learned them almost as early as I learned my own name.

I was born in 1981, just a bit younger than Ron’s two oldest children Jonathan and Tara. I was the perfect age to consume all his early recordings—and that’s exactly what my siblings and I did anytime we had the chance.

Hours and hours listening to those first 15 recordings taught me a lot. They taught me that words and music could be simple, biblical, and rich—and fun. They taught me that God can use stories and songs together to convey His truth. They taught me that once I had kids, I hoped new recordings would still be coming out. And they were a huge part of teaching me how to sing!

Ron’s voice was like him—unassuming but well-trained and highly effective. I can’t sing “Rejoice in the Lord” without hearing his voice in my ear. And many of his songs were just the same.

A few years before Ron’s early-onset dementia was announced, my dad told me he was thankful that he and I have been alive when we could learn Ron’s songs. Now that Ron is home, I’m more grateful than ever.