Rev. David Stetson Langdon

He was born on Feb. 27, 1939, in a house near the Raquette River in Norwood, New York to Ada Babcock Langdon and Walter Crosby Langdon. His childhood was spent between Massena and Cumberland Head in Plattsburgh where, in his youth, he worked as an orderly for the Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital and on the family dairy farm. After graduating from Massena High School in 1957, he attended Hobart College, graduating in 1961 with a degree in psychology. He received a Master of Divinity Degree from New York General Theological Seminary in 1964 and was ordained an Episcopal Priest in the Diocese of Albany in 1965.

In 1965 he married Carolyn Fife and they moved to Elizabethtown to begin as rector at both the Church of the Good Shepard and St. John’s Church in Essex. His service to his community included working in chapels throughout the Adirondacks in the summer, as a chaplain in regional prisons, hospitals, elder care facilities, summer camps, and as an instructor of Greek at SUNY Plattsburgh. He received a Doctor of Ministry in 1978 from Drew University and in 1981 he became the rector at St. Mark’s Church in Malone. After his first marriage ended, he moved around the south working for Habitat for Humanity, and as a chaplain in elder care facilities and hospitals in Florida and Georgia.

In 1992, he married his high school sweetheart, Louise Beaulieu, and they moved to Sumner, Mississippi, where he was appointed vicar at St. Vincent’s-within-the-walls: the Episcopal mission at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman. He was at home with the inmates at Parchman Farm and his work involved everything from supporting inmates of diverse religions to attending to the spiritual and physical needs of those on death row. After he retired from Parchman he continued to do services at churches throughout the Mississippi Delta where he and Louise were welcomed by their congregations.

He adored his community of support at AA and attended meetings multiple times a week throughout nearly 40 years of sobriety. He was a musician who played numerous instruments and knew many songs, hymns and choral works that he would break into unexpectedly at any moment. He was a life-long learner who enjoyed translating scripture from Hebrew and Greek and who had earned numerous degrees and certifications in theology, ministry and marine engine repair.

He was predeceased by his parents, his aunt Dorothy Commando, his sister and brother-in-law Mary and James Pitman, his nephew David Langdon Pitman, and his first wife, Carolyn McDaniel. He is survived by his cherished wife of 32 years, Louise Langdon of Sumner, Mississippi; his children, George Langdon and wife Linda of Shelburne, Vermont; Stephen Langdon and wife Leslie of Saranac Lake; Guy Landingham and wife Elizabeth of Westerville, Ohio; and Ellen Peyton of Marks, Mississippi; his nine grandchildren, Emma, Ben, Sam, Mabry, Ethan, Gabe, Ellie, Simon, and Felix; his nephew James Pitman of Cape Canaveral, Florida; his beloved first cousin Noreen Andrews of Bronson, Florida; and his treasured family from Cumberland Head.

His family is deeply grateful to his wonderful and supportive community in and around Sumner and to Hospice of North Sunflower who eased his passing.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 13, 2024, at Advent Episcopal Church in Sumner. A burial will be held at a later date at the Riverside Cemetery near Norwood.