He was one of five children, the third child and 2nd son of Stanley Fernander, Sr. and Edith Dorsett Fernander. He was born in Cockburn Town, San Salvador, Bahamas on December 18, 1935.
Pastor Fernander’s early life on the island of San Salvador was full of hard work, waking early in the morning before school to herd his family’s sheep. When school was out, he and his siblings assisted their mother with the hard work of farming and growing crops while his father was on contract in Florida picking fruits and vegetables. He learned how to wash his own clothes with scrub boards which his own children remember him doing even when they were growing up. During his free time, he would swim in the ocean and fish. Roy and his siblings had a reputation on the island as being the most well-behaved and hardest working children on the island thanks to the very strict and rigid upbring by their parents.
As a young teenager he left the island of San Salvador to attend academy in Nassau. After two years at the academy in Nassau his parents sent him to the United States to receive an education at Oakwood Academy in Huntsville, Alabama. While attending Oakwood Academy he became his senior class president. After graduating from Oakwood Academy, Roy enrolled at Oakwood College to pursue his dream of becoming a minister. He graduated from Oakwood College in 1962 with a degree in Theology. One of his notable dormitory roommates while attending Oakwood College was Little Richard. Shortly after he graduated with a degree in Theology, he married recent Oakwood Academy graduate Lois Stovall of Columbus, Georgia. Five children were born to their union, Roy Milton Jr. (deceased), Paul Anthony, Edith Renee, Angela Lynn (deceased), and Anita Fay.
Pastor Fernander began his ministry on the Bahamian islands of Inagua, Crooked Island, and San Salvador, as well as South Caicos in the Turks and Caicos Islands. He later pastored three SDA churches in Nassau, Bahamas, (Grantstown, Johnson Park, and Englerston SDA churches). After pastoring in Nassau, he became the Personal Ministries Secretary for the Bahamas Conference and later Conference Evangelist, holding numerous tent ministries where he annually was designated a “centurion” (baptized more than 100 individuals annually). In 1972 he moved his family to the Northern California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists where he served as the Associate Pastor at Market Street SDA Church in Oakland, California. He was later assigned as senior pastor of Beacon Light SDA Church in Richmond, California, followed by serving as senior pastor at Berea SDA Church in Vallejo, California. In 1978 he received a call to serve in the Nevada-Utah Conference where he served as pastor of the Salt Lake City Central SDA church. During his time in Salt Lake City, he maintained an active prison ministry where he played a role in leading death row inmates to Christ. He served in Salt Lake City, Utah, from 1978-1989 until the end of his ministry.
Pastor Fernander enjoyed fishing and gardening, often canning and freezing fruits and vegetables from his garden providing much sustenance for his family for many years, especially when he was serving on remote islands where food was not plentiful. His favorite board game was Sorry. Notably, while serving in Turks and Caicos, he met with and received a medal of service from the Queen of England, Elizabeth II for his dedicated ministry.
Pastor Fernander is preceded in death by his parents Stanley Fernander and Edith Fernander; his siblings, Edris Fernander, Maxine Rolle, Stanley Fernander, Jr., and Henry Fernander; and his children Roy Fernander, Jr. and Angela Lynn Fernander Ray.
Pastor Fernander is survived by his children, Paul Fernander (Noriko), Edith Renee Fernander Byrd, and Anita Fernander; grandchildren Danielle Byrd Scandrick (Jason), Danelle Byrd Watson (Nicholas), Timothy Byrd, Michael Scott, Sam Ray, Brandon Ray, Jarod Fernander, Brooke Fernander; and one great-granddaughter, Macy Byrd.
