Larry Alan Lacy, 80, passed away peacefully on March 31, 2023, in the company of his family following a mercifully brief battle with cancer.
Larry was born on February 2, 1943, in San Diego, CA to Neola and Thomas Clyde Lacy. He graduated from Devine High School in 1961, and married his high school sweetheart, Stephanie Malone Lacy, on June 8, 1963. Larry earned a Bachelor of Music degree from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas in 1967. Larry chose to pursue the ministry, and was elected a Deacon in the United Methodist Church in 1967. In 1970, he earned a Master of Divinity degree from Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University and was elected an Elder in the United Methodist Church in 1971.
Larry dedicated his life to the ministry and praising God through helping others, and with his loving wife Stephanie, served churches in the Central Texas Conference, Southwest Texas Conference, and Rio Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church for almost six decades. He began preaching as a student pastor in Thrall, TX while attending Southwestern University, and later served Methodist Churches in Ennis, Oak Grove, Bertram, Leander, Oakalla, Hallettsville, Lampasas, Edinburg, Trinity San Antonio, St. John’s Corpus Christi, Fredericksburg, and Memorial Austin. Following his retirement, he agreed to serve as a pastor for a small congregation at St. Paul Methodist Church just outside Austin, where he continued to preach the gospel every Sunday until he became physically unable to do so several years ago.
Larry had a beautiful strong singing voice, and his voice could almost always be heard over every other voice in the congregation on Sunday mornings. He and Stephanie loved to sing duets in church and performed at dinner musicals and other musical productions throughout their careers. Larry also loved to travel, whether it involved taking youth groups on numerous ski trips to Colorado, camping at Big Bend, or traveling to other countries such as Israel, Germany, France, Austria, Italy and Russia. Many of these trips were taken with friends and church members, and created lasting and loving memories.
Larry was an avid reader, sometimes reading several books a week. He also loved cars, and often said that if he had not been a minister, he probably would have been a car salesman! He had a special affinity for his Ford trucks! He loved spending time at his lake house on Lake LBJ, and enjoyed few things more than pulling his kids behind the boat. He also loved his pug dogs, who, as great judges of character, loved him back.
Most of all, Larry was a wonderful husband, father, and grandfather, and he will always be remembered for his kind, caring heart and his compassionate soul. He is survived by his wife of almost sixty years, Stephanie Malone Lacy, son Jeff Lacy and wife Gina of Colleyville, TX, son Steve Lacy and wife Wendy of Arlington, TX, son Paul Lacy and wife Dawn of Leander, TX, and daughter Kaye Collins and husband Michael of Corpus Christi, TX, grandchildren Immanuel Lang, Tiffany White, Kalvin Pomplitz, Chris Lacy, Shelby Hedrick, Lauren Lacy, Jay Lacy, David Collins, Sam Lacy, Anna Belle Lacy, Sydney Lacy, sister Edie Buffington, and five great grandchildren.
The family would like to thank numerous caretakers from Isle at Cedar Ridge, St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center and Hospice Austin for their care and compassion these last few weeks. The family also thanks all of the many friends and family members who so lovingly supported him.