With sadness we acknowledge the death of the Rt. Rev. A. Donald Davies, first Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth. Bishop Davies died in the early hours of Sunday, Oct. 16, at the age of 91. A Requiem will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 21, at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Granbury, Texas.
Bishop Davies was preceded in death by his wife of almost 70 years, the former Mabel Roberts, and a son, Allan David Davies. He is survived by four children: Dona Davies; Timothy Davies and his wife, Anita; Mark Davies; and Mary Townsend and her husband, Richard; as well as 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
Having met Bishop Davies when he was Instructor in Christian Education at Seabury-Western in 1966, I was immediately drawn to him. He was, at that time, the only classic Anglo-catholic on the faculty. When he left SWTS to become a cathedral dean, I organized a fund amongst the students to buy him a dean’s birretta as a farewell gift. The next morning in class, he thanked us for “the hat” but, he said, “Mabel complained that the pom-pom kept tickling her all night long.”
On the day after his departure, I went into chapel to discover an Altar Edition Anglican Missal from his library in my stall. On it was the simple note, “I think that you will find a use for this – ADD+”
It was some thirty years before I saw him again. He immediately recognized me and picked up our conversation and friendship as if we had only parted the day before.
Truly a faithful priest and a true friend…RIP