{"id":14399,"date":"2026-10-13T05:17:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-13T11:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=14399"},"modified":"2026-10-12T17:20:55","modified_gmt":"2026-10-12T23:20:55","slug":"14399","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=14399","title":{"rendered":"Remembering David Oringderff"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I met David Oringderff just one time, in a San Antonio wine bar where a bunch of Pagan-studies scholars and members of the local Pagan community met for an evening, (He drove down from Austin, I believe) It was 2004, just before the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (but not the Defense Dept., to use its old name) accepted the “Pentacle Quest,” which allowed Pagan emblems (and others) in national cemeteries.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

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As Selena Fox wrote in the article linked above,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Two other international Wiccan churches joined Circle Sanctuary’s re-application with letters of support, rather than applying separately. Included was a letter from the Covenant of the Goddess (COG), signed by Rev. Kathryn Fuller, and a letter from the Sacred Well Congregation (SWC), signed by Dr. David Oringderff. Both of these churches have members who are veterans as well as members who are on active duty. SWC includes groups that meet at US military installations.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you read her story of the pushback against the Pagan religious acknowledgement,, you have to realize that it’s not just from bureaucrats but from the entrenched monotheistic chaplains. As a retired officer and Pagan leader, Oringdorf pushed for Pagan chaplains for years — long before SecWar Pete Hegseth came on the scene — and ultimately got nowhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following eulogy was published by Cherry Hill Seminary this past week<\/a>:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

Columbia, S.C.\u2014Cherry Hill Seminary is sad to learn of the death on October 6 of longtime faculty leader David Oringderff, Ph.D. Fondly called “Dr. O” by many students, Oringderff taught for the Seminary beginning in 2002, headed the Department of Pastoral Counseling & Chaplaincy for about a decade, assisted in the development of the Community Ministry Certificate, and helped the academic dean to develop curriculum standards for his department.<\/p>\n

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“But his stellar work on behalf of Cherry Hill Seminary was just one facet of David’s extraordinary life,” said director Holli Emore. “Biographies that emerge in the wake of his passing will more fully detail all of David’s accomplishments. But I knew him as a co-founder and executive director emeritus<\/em> of Sacred Well Congregation, an international Pagan coalition, and as the person behind the Wiccan circle at Fort Hood, Texas, when a national media firestorm erupted.” Emore continued, “David was also active for many years with the COMISS Network on Ministry in Specialized Settings. But I remember him best for always making himself available to students, his colleagues, and to me. We could always depend on David to follow through with whatever he committed to, quietly sharing his wisdom when asked.”<\/p>\n

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Others in the Seminary community also shared their memories.<\/p>\n

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I first got to know David when he was a U.S. Army major and he requested that I become his Europe-based doctoral supervisor during his NATO posting in Europe. His dedication to Paganism and Earth-based traditions, and to ensuring that those in the military have access to the spiritual resources that they need, was outstanding. His legacy lives on in the military in the form of the Sacred Well Congregation and the generations of chaplains, students, and Pagans that he has inspired. He will be greatly missed by his friends in Europe, the States, and beyond.—Vivianne Crowley<\/em><\/p>\n

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Only last December 2025 I was privileged to present David with the Hypatia Award for Excellence in Education in recognition of lifetime achievement and his service to the Cherry Hill Seminary community. During that time, he advised and taught scores of students, and mentored the first Master of Divinity graduate.—Margo Wolfe, Ph.D., Academic Dean<\/em><\/p>\n

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As a fellow psychologist, and an early instructor in the counseling program, I respected and admired David\u2019s leadership at Cherry Hill. David mentored and guided students to achieve successful and satisfying careers as pagan counselors. He was compassionate and sincere, and a joy to work with.—Valerie Cole, Ph.D.<\/em><\/p>\n

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As a fellow chaplain endorser, I always knew David to be friendly and truthful. A person of integrity, he was not afraid to engage myself or others of differing faiths. And I do remember him well as an endorser and colleague. I am a past Chair of the COMISS Network, and he attended during my tenure. I respected him.—David B. Plummer<\/em><\/p>\n

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David has been a close friend and trusted mentor for many years. In many ways, he served as a father figure. He will be well remembered in this realm, and may he be well received in the next.—Shane L. Nelson, M.Div.<\/em><\/p>\n

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To David’s wife, Willow, his family and the many, many people whose lives he touched, Cherry Hill Seminary extends our sincere condolences. Read more about David here<\/a><\/p>\n

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A visitation will be held from 10:00 am to 11:00 am Thursday, October 15, 2026 at Mullinax Funeral Home, Butler, Missouri. Funeral services will follow at 11:00 am Thursday, also at the funeral home, with burial in Fort Scott National Cemetery, Fort Scott, Kansas.<\/em><\/p>\n

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<\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I met David Oringderff just one time, in a San Antonio wine bar where a bunch of Pagan-studies scholars and members of the local Pagan community met for an evening, (He drove down from Austin, I believe) It was 2004, just before the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (but not the Defense Dept., to use its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[10,49,472,5],"class_list":["post-14399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-american-religion","tag-military","tag-military-veterans","tag-paganism"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s6xQTg-14399","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1143,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=1143","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":0},"title":"Yahoo Group for Pagan Veterans","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"April 17, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Some American Pagan military veterans feel that established organizations such as the American Legion and VFW are too heavily Christianized, so they have started a Yahoo group as a first step towards forming a separate organization.It is the old dilemma -- change from within, or go outside \"the system\"?If you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"American religion\"","block_context":{"text":"American religion","link":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?tag=american-religion"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":626,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=626","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":1},"title":"No marker for Wiccan veteranA\u2026","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"March 3, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"No marker for Wiccan veteranA Wiccan sergeant from the Nevada National Guard was killed in action in Afghanistan. Now his widow runs up against the Veterans Administration's refusal to permit a pentacle marker on the graves of Wiccan veterans, notes the Las Vegas Review-Journal (Link may expire, so I will\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1210,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=1210","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":2},"title":"The Not-Quite-Pagan ‘Pioneer Day’ Parade","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"September 20, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Think of a typical American small-town parade: the Apple Queen and her court in a convertible, the honorary marshalls (some respected elderly couple) in an antique car, the high-school band kids' faces earnest and nervous under their shakos, Shriners in miniature cars, a military vehicle or two, horses, alpacas, old\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Colorado\"","block_context":{"text":"Colorado","link":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?tag=colorado"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"http:\/\/www.assoc-amazon.com\/e\/ir?t=chascli-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0814797083","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":803,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=803","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":3},"title":"Gallimaufry","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"February 2, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"\u2022 A federal judge won't let the Veterans Administration wriggle out of the lawsuit over grave markers for Wiccan veterans.\u2022 The Guardian, a British newspaper, covers the Greek Pagan renaissance.For years, Orthodox clerics believed that they had defeated Greeks wishing to embrace the customs and beliefs of the ancient past.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"blogging\"","block_context":{"text":"blogging","link":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?tag=blogging"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":686,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=686","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":4},"title":"Onward, Pagan soldiers","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"July 5, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"The issue of Sgt. Patrick Stewart's Wiccan memorial marker \"has legs,\" as I would have said in my newspaper reporter days.Driving to school today, I heard Carl Kasell update the story on NPR's Morning Edition, and it occurred to me that that was the first time I had heard Wicca\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":860,"url":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?p=860","url_meta":{"origin":14399,"position":5},"title":"VA Approves the Wiccan Pentagram","author":"Chas S. Clifton","date":"April 23, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"The first message (from a Pagan staffer at the American Academy of Religion) hit my inbox at 12:28 today, and then the Colorado Pagan email lists lit up: The Veterans Adminstration approved the pentagram for veterans' grave markers. (Pentagram, pentacle, same thing as far as the news media are concerned.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"American religion\"","block_context":{"text":"American religion","link":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/?tag=american-religion"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14399"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14399\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14409,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14399\/revisions\/14409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.chasclifton.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}