struggling congregation of only 18 members, with an average age of 65 years. While Hayford had initially agreed to pastor the church for only a period of six months, he later felt compelled to remain permanently. Only a few weeks from accepting an offer to pastor another Foursquare church, Hayford met with Foursquare denomination president Rolf McPherson, stating that he wanted to remain with the Van Nuys congregation. By the early 1980s, The Church on the Way had become a pioneer of the megachurch movement and numbered among the largest churches in America, particularly within the Foursquare denomination, at one point reporting membership exceeding 10,000. Actor Dean Jones (deceased), a close friend of Hayford's, was an elder in the church, as was Pat Boone, along with Jan and Paul Crouch, the founders of Trinity Broadcasting Network, which regularly broadcast services from the church. Latter years In the late 1990s, Hayford felt called to establish a Pentecostal seminary in Los Angeles to train other pastors and founded The King's College and Seminary. In 1999, he resigned as the senior pastor of The Church On The Way to focus on the college, although he briefly returned to help the church through a difficult transition after his successor and son-in-law, Scott Bauer, died suddenly. On October 4, 2004, Hayford was elected to a four-year term as president of the Foursquare denomination, a position he chose not to pursue after that single term. In 2013, Hayford felt called to move the King's University to Southlake, Texas, under the stewardship of Gateway Church. In 2015, The Church On The Way, led by senior pastor Tim Clark, honored Hayford with the title of Pastor Emeritus in recognition of his continuing contributions to church management and oversight. Personal life and death On July 4, 1954, Hayford married his college sweetheart, Anna Marie Smith. Their marriage produced four children (Rebecca, Jack III, Mark, and Christa), 11 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren. In early 2016, Anna was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and died in 2017. Hayford remarried the following year and lived in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. He discontinued making public appearances in 2019. Hayford died at his home in Los Angeles on January 8, 2023, at the age of 88. Recognition In March 2014, Hayford was inducted into the National Religious Broadcasters Hall of Fame. He has also won the Gospel Music Association's Dove