David R. Patterson was born on 12 October 1931 and lived all his life in Solihull, outside of Birmingham, England. He attended Eversfield Preparatory School, Solihull School, and Birmingham University, where he met his late wife, Wendy, who passed away in 2004.
David first started worshipping regularly at St. Alphege Church in 1955 and by the age of 25 he was an altar server. He went on to become a member of the Guild of Servers for 65 years, including 14 years as Joint Warden. A special group of friends called “The Puffins” included Pam and Roy McLeod, Evelyn and Tim Berry, Sally and Ron Herd, Audrey and Alan Norman and Anne Kemp, all of whom warmly welcomed Griswolds from around the world to St. Alphege and Solihull.
David’s contribution to the life, community and historic research of St. Alphege was considerable. He served on several committees, was also a Pastoral Link Visitor, did Home Communion visits and was an Area Deliverer of the Parish Magazine for 40 years. David’s knowledge of the history of St. Alphege and of many aspects of its interior, particularly the many monuments, memorials and families they represented, led to much contact over the years with visitors from far and wide who wanted to know more about their ancestors’ links to Solihull and the church.
In particular, he developed a close relationship with members of the Griswold Family Association. His assistance to those searching for the origins of Edward, Matthew, Francis, and Michael Griswold was invaluable. The GFA led six heritage tours to Solihull between 1984 and 2017, all of which involved guided tours and talks from David on the history of the church and the Griswold connections with Solihull and Warwickshire. His research and extensive knowledge contributed to the production of the latest St. Alphege Church Guidebook in 1989. He was a favorite lecturer on “The History of Solihull and St. Alphege;” “The Greswolds and Griswolds;” and, another interest close to his heart, “John Constable – a Warwickshire Artist?” A Service of Thanksgiving took place on 20 April 2026.
David’s association with the GFA is largely due to the visits initially of Jim and Bonnie Griswold of Exeter, NH, who produced the first booklet tracing the English origins of the Griswold family. That connection then led to Robert and Esther French’s subsequent research in the mid-1990s resulting in “The Greswold Family” 12 Generations in England.” With DNA research through our Big-Y DNA project, the origins of Michael Griswold have finally been proven. During the last visit to David in March of 2025, he was, despite physical limitations, still deeply invested in the research process.
David was a generous and enthusiastic host to many of our Griswold family and will be deeply missed by all who were lucky enough to know him. His legacy will continue in the many ways he assisted GFA research over the last fifty years.