About Us

Dr. Cromie recently retired after nearly ten years as Preaching Pastor of the Royal Poinciana Chapel in Palm Beach FL. He came there in 1995 from more than a decade as Senior Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Ft. Lauderdale FL. He began his work as Associate Pastor at The Shadyside Presbyterian Church from 1961-66. He left Shadyside to attend the University of St. Andrews, Scotland as a Rotary Foundation Fellow; and later returned to St. Mary’s College of that University on a Howard C. Scharfe Memorial Scholarship from which he received his Ph.D. degree under James Aiken Whyte in 1974.

Dr. Cromie is a native Pittsburgher. He is also a Pitt alumnus and also graduated with honors from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 1962. After returning from Scotland he was Pastor of the Parkwood Presbyterian Church in Allison Park, PA, and then he served for a dozen years as Senior Pastor of Southminster Presbyterian Church in Mt. Lebanon PA, before being “called” to Florida.

It was while he was at Southminster that he founded Desert Ministries in 1982. Thanks to Eleanor B. Simpson, the Charter Executive Director of DMI and others, it began quite modestly to serve clergy, lay persons, churches and others. Thanks to the blessing of the Lord and the devotion of many, it is now a prospering Christian Organization located in Charlotte NC. Margaret Good Cromie has been the Executive Director for the past 15 years.

Dick and Peggy have been married for 47 years. They have three daughters: Catherine is married to Michael DeCramer and lives in Charlotte; Anne Campbell Cromie of Gainesville Florida, and The Rev. Courtney Beth Cromie, an associate pastor in Yorktown VA. They also have two grandchildren: Madeline Noel DeCramer and William Cromie DeCramer, of Charlotte.

What is Desert Ministries?

Desert Ministries, Inc. is a non-profit organization that seeks to serve the community of faith through Printed Resources and The Tape of the Month Club Ministry -- designed to speak about spiritual growth related to the desert experiences of life that affect so many.

How did Desert Ministries begin?

Desert Ministries was originated in 1982 by Dr. Richard Cromie. One spring day, Dr. Cromie was in Arizona and watched the barren desert come to life when a torrential rain came down. Remembering what the Biblical prophet Isaiah said, "The desert will blossom and flourish when the living water comes." Dr. Cromie, with his wife and some friends, recognized the need for sharing his then two decades of experience as a pastor. Desert Ministries was created to provide the Living Water of Christ to any and all passing through the sundry deserts of life: death, divorce, cancer, alcoholism, suicide, etc.

Board of Directors: Jack G. Armstrong, Bill Bone, Courtney Babcock Borntraeger, Ray W. Brown, Katherine K. Bulette, Julie S. Cleland, Courtney B. Cromie, B. Alan Dobbins, III, Charles A. Ferguson, Elinor Fleming, Sandra Green, William E. Hall, Steven L. Harberts, Melinda B. Hinners, Harold H. Hogg, Phyllis Frye James, Ian M. Kean, John E. Mehl, Robert F. Patton, Agnes (Christie) Reid, Nancy N. Rohrich, Eleanor B. Simpson, Karen Ort Sullivan,, Elizabeth O. Swaim, Robert L. Thompson, Matthew J. Winkel.

Executive Directors: Margaret G. Cromie & Cathie DeCramer (North Carolina Office)