David Lowell Dodge

David Lowell Dodge lived with curiosity, conviction, and quiet generosity. A physician, scientist, gardener, adventurer, and devoted husband, father, and grandfather, he believed that the world was always worth exploring, whether through a microscope, beneath the ocean’s surface, along a mountain trail, or among the stars.

Dave was born on February 5, 1940, in St. Paul, Minnesota, to Lowell J. Dodge and Kathryn Bergstrom. An only child, he spent his early years in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where exceptional teachers sparked a lifelong love of science, especially biology. After moving to Springfield, Illinois, he attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison before earning his medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis. He completed his residency and fellowship in pathology at the University of Chicago.

His medical career was distinguished by both excellence and service. Drafted into the U.S. Army, Dave rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and served as Chief Army Pathologist in Korea and later in Fairbanks, Alaska. After military service, he worked at Peralta Hospital in Oakland before completing additional specialty training in nuclear medicine and ultrasound at the University of California, San Francisco. In 1980, he joined the Department of Pathology at Providence Portland Medical Center, where he practiced until his retirement in 2003. Never quite finished caring for others, he spent another fourteen years serving patients through Oregon’s medical marijuana program at Empower Clinic.

While working at Peralta Hospital, Dave met the love of his life, Christina (Jun Jan) Lay. They married on May 12, 1978, beginning a partnership that would span forty-eight remarkable years. Their honeymoon was pure Dave and Chris; hiking the rugged Nā Pali Coast of Kauai before heading to Baja California. Adventure became a way of life. Together they raised four children, Kimberly, Phillip, Benjamin, and Tracy, introducing them to backpacking in Oregon, remote beaches in Baja, Hawaiian Islands, and countless family road trips where curiosity mattered more than itineraries.

Dave believed deeply that medicine should serve everyone. During his residency in Chicago, he helped the Black Panther Party establish a community laboratory, teaching neighborhood residents to perform blood counts and other basic testing to improve access to healthcare. Throughout his life he remained committed to civil rights, environmental stewardship, scientific inquiry, and social justice, continuing to participate in peaceful demonstrations well into retirement.

To know Dave was to know someone endlessly fascinated by the world. He devoured science fiction, history, and stacks of journals and magazines. He loved spirited conversations, the Beat Generation, photography, scuba diving, tennis, golf, and discovering ancient ruins throughout Central America. He stood in awe of the cosmos and never lost his sense of wonder.

At home, Dave’s happiest place was often his garden. He delighted in growing tomatoes, vegetables, hydrangeas, and rhododendrons, finding the same patience and satisfaction there that he had found in medicine. Friends knew him for his loyalty, strong-willed nature, and intellect. His personal motto was simple: “You're better than you think."

Although chronic pain from multiple hip and knee replacements became part of his later years, it rarely slowed him. Retirement was filled with guitar lessons, golf, gardening, Washington Park walks with his dear friend Kana, and treasured time at the family’s home in Nehalem. There he enjoyed morning strolls with his lovable dog Ollie, evenings around the campfire, and gathering his children and grandchildren around the table with Chris.

After a brief hospitalization for an infection complicated by kidney failure, Dave chose hospice care. He spent the final 10 days of his life at home, surrounded by the people he loved most. He died peacefully on July 25, 2026.

In a final reflection of the life he embraced so fully, he was cremated with letters from his family, treasures from his garden, a marijuana leaf, a favorite New Yorker magazine, and the apron he so often wore while cooking feasts for his family.

Dave is survived by his beloved wife, Chris Dodge; his children, Kimberly Gronquist, Phillip Dodge, Benjamin Dodge, and Tracy Dodge; his sons-in-law, Peter Gronquist and Andrew Crichton; his grandchildren, Dove, Wolfie, and Cozy Gronquist, and Costa and Aya Crichton; his sister-in-law, Mei Fletcher; and his faithful companion, Ollie.