The Pastor
Pastor David A. Douthett is always glad to spend time with you to talk or pray about your spiritual journey or to discuss questions of spirituality or church life. He is generally in his study at the church between 1:00-6:00 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and other times by appointment. It’s not a bad idea to contact him to confirm that he’s in.
David grew up in western Pennsylvania. He received his B.S. in aerospace engineering from Virginia Tech and his M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary. David was ordained to the ministry of Word and Sacrament in 1990, the same year he married Rev. Molly Whipple Douthett. His interests include astronomy, cooking, and puzzles.
(571) 293-6543
The Music Director
Donald K. Burgess, Director of Music, has been on staff at The Catoctin Presbyterian Church since 2003. As Director of Music, Mr. Burgess oversees all aspects of the music program, serves as the accompanist for all worship services, and directs the Adult Choir.
Mr. Burgess is a graduate of James Madison University and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music Education. He was a music educator in the Fairfax County Public Schools system for 13 years. During this time, the choirs under his direction were consistently rated superior and took top honors in festivals and competitions. In addition, Mr. Burgess has been a guest conductor for choirs in Loudoun County, VA, Shenandoah County, VA and was the Music Director for an international Peace Child choir in Krasnodar, Russia. He is also a highly regarded accompanist with the Loudoun County Public Schools system where he works with middle school and high school choral and drama programs.
The Session
The session is the board of ruling elders who are responsible for governing the congregation and guiding its witness to the sovereign activity of God in the world. They are elected by the congregation for their wisdom, maturity of faith, demonstrated skills in leadership, and compassionate spirit.
The pastor serves as moderator of the session, with voice and vote equal to the ruling elders.
The ruling elders currently serving on the Catoctin session are:
Amy McIntosh – Clerk, serving on Ops and Mission
clerk@catoctin.org
Janet Brown – Christian Education
Janet.Brown@catoctin.org
Richard Herndon – Worship, Nominating
Richard.Herndon@catoctin.org
Debbie Hill – Outreach, serving on Mission
Debbie.Hill@catoctin.org
Reg Jones – Stewardship, Nominating
Reg.Jones@catoctin.org
Becky Thacker – TBD
Becky.Thacker@catoctin.org
The Committee Chairs
While the session oversees all the life and ministry of the congregation, we make use of several committees to carry out much of that work. Sometimes the elders on session chair committees, and sometimes others who have gifts and calling in particular areas serve as chairs, with the session providing support, guidance, and oversight as needed.
You can learn more about the work of our committees on our Ministries page
Our committee chairs are:
Care of Congregation – Pam Siek, Pam.Siek@catoctin.org
- Prayer & Care – Joni Siker, Joni.Siker@catoctin.org, prayers@catoctin.org
Christian Education – Janet Brown, Janet.Brown@catoctin.org, sundayschool@catoctin.org
- Youth – currently vacant
Mission – Connie Moore, Connie.Moore@catoctin.org, mission@catoctin.org
Nominating – Richard Herndon, Richard.Herndon@catoctin.org, Reg Jones, Reg.Jones@catoctin.org
Operations – Leif Larsen, Leif.Larsen@catoctin.org, operations@catoctin.org
- Personnel – Leif Larsen, Leif.Larsen@catoctin.org
- Endowments – Russ Mehl, Russ.Mehl@catoctin.org
Outreach – Logan McIntosh, Logan.McIntosh@catoctin.org
Stewardship – Reg Jones, Reg.Jones@catoctin.org, Bill Cox, Bill.Cox@catoctin.org, stewardship@catoctin.org
Worship – Richard Herndon, Richard.Herndon@catoctin.org