Donald Pittman Scott

Don enjoyed growing up in Coeur d'Alene Idaho with his parents, two sisters, three brothers and a large extended family....and he never forgot how hard his parents struggled to keep his family fed and together during the depression. He viewed 'hard work' as natural and filled many spaces in his journey with a striking range of jobs. Before he could go to Princeton Theological Seminary in 1954, he needed to pay off his Whitworth College debt. He spent the summer logging, grave digging and working on a highway survey crew to earn enough money. When he finally arrived in the East, it was via train and with a big boxed lunch packed by his mama.

Don believed that the experiences and passion that informed the rest of his life began in 1957, a time of growing unrest and the quickening of the Civil Rights Movement. He answered the call to serve as Assistant Pastor at the Hollis Presbyterian Church in Queens, New York which was in the midst of the upheaval of white flight and racial change. Soon he became the Acting Pastor and then, the Pastor.... and there he remained, intentionally, for seventeen years.

As the congregation rapidly grew, an Assistant Pastor was needed and two colleagues, (Chuck Nelson and Roger Quillin) at different times, complemented Don's leadership. In January 1964, Don and Chuck participated in a voter registration demonstration in Hattiesburg, Mississippi and spent the following week in jail. Don traveled back to Washington DC to be with Joyce Bosted and to reflect and consider the racism he had witnessed. They both agreed that Don was right where he should be, in the Hollis church; they married later that year. Mark was born in 1967 and Holly in 1970.

With the rise of the Black Power Movement and acknowledgment of the necessary shift from integration to economic justice, Don moved on to study in New York City at the New School for Social Research for a master's degree in Urban Affairs and Policy Analysis. In 1976, the family moved to Germantown in Philadelphia, PA and Don began navigating effectively between full time or interim pastoring and community development work. Over the next twenty years, he led the Northwest Interfaith Movement and later, the Central Germantown Council. And he listened to and guided four different Presbyterian congregations as they considered their future missions.

Responding to the news of Don's admittance into Whatcom Hospice House, a dear friend and colleague wrote:

'...They threw out the mold my friend when you came along: skilled pastor and justice advocate, great husband, father and enduring friend to many. I am always thinking of your commitment to a better world and creative leadership for justice at the neighborhood level and beyond. You have been my model in many ways...'

In 'retirement', in Sussex County, New Jersey, amid lakes and forest, Don renewed his love of working with wood. In earlier years he and Joyce were furniture scavengers and Don a good rebuilder/refinisher. Now, he was ready to build his own creations. But first he had to convert the garage into a wood working shop and, build a shelter for the wood. Then he found master craftsmen and focused on Windsor chairs which included the making of some of his own implements. He also made many pieces of furniture using the walnut and cherry trees felled by hurricanes in his yard. Eventually, he took up carving - countless birds, animals, and small versions of some of Allan Houser's sculptures.

As productive as Don was in his woodshop, he also spent hours of work and companionship with the volunteers at the historic Millbrook Village in the Delaware Water Gap. And as he said, he found "....the perfect place to conclude my ministry" at the Franklin Presbyterian Church which he served for one and a half years.

An interlude followed in the Chesapeake Bay area of Virginia to be with dear friends until all needed the support of family elsewhere. Don happily returned to the majestic Northwest, allowing him and Joyce to live close to Holly in Bellingham, WA and nearer to Mark in California.

One of the last things Don wrote, with minor modification to an old hymn:

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis love that brought me safe thus far
And love will lead me home


Don leaves behind his loving family and close friends. He will be missed for the rest of our days.

Don's commitment to economic and social justice was lifelong. He particularly valued the work of the Equal Justice Initiative and the ACLU. Any donations to those causes would be a much appreciated tribute to him.