Obituary

Walter A. Hoffman, 98, beloved husband, father, grandfather, great -grandfather, WWII veteran, pastor, Bible teacher, evangelist, and friend, was promoted to glory on July 4, 2024. His wife of 77 years, Pearl (“Pat”) was by his side as he entered the arms of the Lord. Along with Pearl, Walt leaves behind four sons: Jay (Emily), Jeff (Marcy), Phil (Terry), and Paul (Lynn), 11 grandchildren, 18 great- grandchildren, sister Valley, and innumerable friends.

Born in Long Beach, CA on June 22, 1926, to Walter Emil Hoffman and Grace Hanson Hoffman, Walt graduated from Long Beach Wilson High School in 1944. He served in the Navy during WWII and married Pearl on December 23, 1946. Walt earned a degree in electrical engineering at UCLA and joined his father’s electrical construction company, Hoffman & Son Inc., in the early 1950s.  Known for his exceptional integrity as a businessman, he guided the company through the successful completion of several landmark projects, including renovation of the Queen Mary and construction of the Bonaventure Hotel in downtown LA, and the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Dana Point.

Walt committed his life to Jesus Christ at a Billy Graham rally in 1957. He and Pearl were longtime members of the Alamitos Friends Church in Garden Grove, CA. He taught adult Sunday school for two decades and began teaching a Bible Study to eight young men in 1972, which grew to several hundred, eventually becoming the Monday Night Bible Study Church. Many people came to know Christ and received the precious gifts of Walt’s resolute dedication to humbly teaching the Word of God, book by book, verse by verse, and  were blessed by knowing the exceptional model of a man of God. Walt authored And Church Happened (Deep River Books, 2015), a book about God’s surprising sovereignty in forming and growing his Church.

After retiring, Walt and Pearl relocated to The Dalles, Oregon, with their children and grandchildren. There he served as a pastor at Calvary Baptist Church and became greatly involved in the lives of their family and community. Walt and Pearl traveled extensively as part of their ministries, from Lithuania to South Africa, India to Indonesia, and were devoted to serving God’s kingdom. They returned to Orange County in 2008, and were active in Grace Fellowship Church in Costa Mesa, CA. They were living in Brea, CA, at the time of Walt’s passing.

The immediate family recently laid his mortal body to rest, and they invite all who knew and loved Walt Hoffman to join them at a memorial service Saturday, September 21, 2024, 10:00 am at Grace Fellowship Church, 3170 Red Hill Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626.
**  Please use this evite link to let the family know if you will attend:  http://evite.me/WaltHoffman  **

In lieu of flowers the family suggests a special gift to a missionary, or one of Walt’s favorite ministries, Gideon’s International, https://www.sendtheword.org , or YWAM Kona, University of the Nations, https://ywamkona.org/donate/.