Dwight Alton Dodge – 50th Reunion Essay

Dwight Alton Dodge

Date of Death: 19-Jan-2006

College: Morse

(This memorial was submitted by William Caltrider to the March/April 2006 Class Notes.)

It is with a heavy heart that I tell you that our classmate and friend Dwight Dodge died on January 19. The day before, he suffered a massive aneurysm near the brain stem that left him without brain function. Dwight was not only a classmate but also my lifelong best friend, dating from September 9, 1955, when we sat next to each other on the first day of third grade. In pseudo-adult fashion, we decided we would make independent decisions with no mutual consultation and being sensible young men, we both came to Yale, also deciding not to room together in order to broaden our horizons. Dwight was an honors graduate of Parkville High School in Baltimore, winning multiple letters in soccer and tennis, and achieving state and national recognition for his work in student government.

While at Yale, he majored in philosophy was a proud member of the company of scholars at Morse College, rooming with Joel Peterson. He started his career in banking, but spent most of his working life in the retail oil business, retiring in 2002. He and his wife Sharon moved to western Maryland in 2004 to enjoy a calmer life and indulge his passions for nature photography and fishing. Dwight savored the mountains, as he was brought closer to his father’s rural West Virginia roots, and he began compiling a family genealogy. He leaves his widow Sharon, son Trevor, and grandson TJ, whom he had closely mentored as this fine young man grew in both years and stature. I know Sharon would treasure any letters and reminiscences you might send: Mrs. Sharon Dodge, 606 Harvey Winters Drive, Oakland, MD 21550.

Excerpts from The Baltimore Sun: “He booked rhythm-and-blues bands from all around New England,” said a classmate, William Caltrider of Baltimore. “He had quiet, innate natural leadership qualities, and he never got a swelled head about it.”

After graduation he went into in banking with Manufacturers Hanover Trust in New York as an account manager in corporate loans. “I never saw him lose his temper or be short with anyone,” said a cousin, James R. Breeden of Greenlawn, New York. “He was a hard worker, the kind of person that most bosses would want to have around.”

He moved to Pasadena in 1975, and worked at J.P. Gibbons Co., a petroleum and asphalt products distributor. He also owned a Good Humor ice cream franchise in Baltimore and Anne Arundel County. Before retiring in 2003, he was a manager for McComas Fuel. He also enjoyed tinkering with tools, machinery, and digital technology. Friends said he read poetry, history, and philosophy. He also had an extensive collection of classic American films, principally westerns and spy thrillers.