Supporter Stories: David Dodson

David Dodson’s connection with the Cathedral stretches back to some of his earliest memories, when he began his education on the Cathedral Close as a kindergartner. He attended school with us through the end of high school—and as the Cathedral was still under construction all that time, you could say he grew up with the Cathedral.

David had never sung before he auditioned for our boys chorister program at the age of 8. Soon he was admitted to the senior choir. “I had no idea what an honor that was,” he says with a laugh. With the admission, he received a scholarship to St. Albans School, but “there being nothing in this world free, we sang for 15 hours a week!”

In his time as a chorister, David witnessed many events of national importance at the Cathedral, including President Eisenhower’s funeral, the memorial for Winston Churchill and Dr. Martin Luther King’s last Sunday service. “I got to see all of history kind of unfold,” he says.

He also traveled with the choir to Westminster Abbey in England to be the Choir in Residence for three weeks. “And imagine being a pre-teen on a giant construction site and figuring out how to get into the parts of the Cathedral no one was supposed to get into, and to run around in a Gothic cathedral. How many people have that growing up? Harry Potter had nothing on us.”

Although he hasn’t lived in Washington, D.C., since the end of high school, David visits the Cathedral when he can and served as vice president of the National Cathedral Association for 10 years. Recently, through our planned giving office, he’s created a perpetual fund in memory of his parents to support music at the Cathedral for years to come.

“What the Cathedral does is incredible, with the music, programming, services and huge national events,” David says. “In this very challenging time for our nation, I am particularly excited about the courage and clarity the staff and clergy have in speaking to what is going on without being partisan politically. They’re helping people stay centered in a time when it’s very difficult to stay centered. It’s very important that we have the National Cathedral.”

David supports the Cathedral as an NCA member because, “Having benefited from other people supporting the Cathedral, I know there would be no life and vitality without that support. I give to maintain the beauty, the witness, the quality. My fellow NCA members know how wonderful the Cathedral is. I want to thank them for what the NCA provides and for the community of the NCA. Our work as the NCA is absolutely essential to keep the Cathedral thriving. The Cathedral is important, and we’re important.”