Revive – Renew – Restore

God has gifted Don with passion and ability to guide people spiritually as they navigate life through his teaching and preaching the Bible.  Don’s ultimate goal is to communicate God's love with simple clarity and consistency of life to draw people to Jesus.

Born and raised in Suffolk, Pastor Don's faith was nurtured there at First Baptist. Don attended Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History, graduating in 1976. From there, Don went on to receive his Master of Divinity Degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, NC, in 1980.

Don preached his first sermon at age 16 and was pastoring his first church at 19.  It was in that church that he met his wife, Audrey, and they were married in 1977.  Together they have one son, John-Mark, who is married to Daniella. They live in Austin, TX.

Don has also served churches in North Carolina and Florida. In 1989, he returned to Virginia and pastored Mount Hermon Baptist Church for almost 17 years. In 2005 he became pastor of the historic First Baptist Church of Alexandria.

He has been president of the Baptist General Association of Virginia and has served on the boards of Hope Tree Family Services and the John Leland Center. He has served as a trustee of the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and more recently, Guidestone Financial Resource.