Longtime musical personality David Daugherty remembered
David Daugherty trained dozens, if not hundreds, of students vocally throughout the course of his life and was an instrumentalist and music director for numerous stage shows and at several local churches during that time.
Because of the influence he had on the people of Butler, his younger sister, Rebecca Simmons, is unsure of how many people will attend his memorial service May 6 at Covenant United Presbyterian Church, but she is expecting a lot.
“I am expecting 150 to 200 people, because everywhere David went he had a lot of friends,” Simmons said. “He was always the fun one, he was the life of the party. He had a wonderful laugh and was always jovial; he had a bright personality, a ball of light.”
Daugherty died Jan. 19 in Cleveland at the age of 67. He was born in Butler on July 30, 1955, the fourth of five children. He was an accomplished pipe organist, choir director, vocal coach, conductor and baritone who received an education from Dana School of Music at Youngstown State University and Carnegie Mellon University. He served as a musician in many capacities throughout his career.
Simmons said her brother was prolific in many aspects of life, which she attributes to his dedication and training in music.
“Everything he did he was a perfectionist, and if he did anything, he did it well,” said Simmons, of Butler. “He was great at decorating, every place he had was beautiful. He loved plants. It didn't matter how many hours he had to practice, he would practice until he had perfection.”
Simmons said he was a skilled pipe organist and could even maintain and fix them thanks to his knowledge. She said he was a baritone with a “beautiful voice” and a people person. As much as he enjoyed playing church and classical music, Daugherty also loved listening to it in his free time, she said.
Daugherty’s skills were on display to many who worked with him at churches or in shows.
Beth Ackelson, a music teacher at Karns City Senior High School, said she sent many of her students to Daugherty for vocal training. She said the students always came back to her music classes not only with improvements but with additional inspiration from Daugherty.
“I used to send all my students interested in private voice, because he was a great vocal teacher,” Ackelson said. “My students are devastated by his death. They have been texting me and saying what a huge influence on their life he had.”
Ackelson said she met Daugherty through musicals at Butler Musical Theatre Guild, where he served as musical director for some of its productions. His attitude with the music showed, Ackelson said.
“David was a very cordial, uplifting, just a great guy to be around. Very easy to talk to,” Ackelson said. “He was a phenomenal musician. He was the music director for several shows I was in.”
Lacretia Crawford, of Zelienople, also knew Daugherty through Butler Musical Theatre Guild. She also said Daugherty’s personality made him a good teacher.
“I felt like he really knew how to walk the line of making things an enjoyable experience,” Crawford said. “You would come out of it with a better understanding of the emotion or technicality of (the music).”
The last time Ackelson had contact with Daugherty was when he was organizing a show for his church.
“He had called and asked me to do a concert at his church, and COVID hit, and we kind of lost touch,” Ackelson said. “I never got to do that concert with him. I really wish I did.”
Simmons saw her brother shortly before his death. She said he was taking a three-week vacation for the first time in his life and visited her in Butler after he recently moved to Cleveland.
The siblings spent a few days together, going for drives and meeting with other old friends from the area before Daugherty set off to Philadelphia.
When Daugherty didn’t communicate with Simmons for some time, she knew something was wrong.
“We were very very close and for most of our life, we talked every day,” Simmons said. “He was loved everywhere.”
A celebration of life for Daugherty is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. May 6 at Covenant United Presbyterian Church at 230 East Jefferson Street in Butler.
