Syracuse, N.Y. — One of two men shot and killed this weekend has been identified as a 42-year-old hard-working father who regularly attended church.
Erskine Dodson Jr. (pronounced Er-skin) was shot Sunday night and later died at Upstate University Hospital, according to the Rev. Milton Kornegay, the pastor of his church.
“As his pastor, the news this morning, it totally shocked me,” said Kornegay, pastor of Central Baptist Church in Syracuse. “He’s a faithful member; quiet, but very observant and a good listener. He’s very well liked.”
Dodson often brought his young son, E.J., to the church’s children’s program.
“He was very committed to raising his son,” Kornegay said. “He was just one of those guys you could depend on. You seldom saw him involve himself in nonsense. He kind of gravitated toward things that had purpose and meaning, and very easy to talk to. He had a lot of friends.”
Dodson had so many friends in the community, in part, because he ran a private business fixing and selling used cars, Kornegay said. Dodson also worked full-time at Eaton’s Crouse-Hinds since 2013, the pastor said.
“He was well loved at his job,” he said. “People there are crushed today.”
Syracuse police have said they do not know where Dodson was or what he was doing when someone shot him in the mid-section Sunday night. His pastor also did not know, but said some people in the community have said it may been a case of mistaken identity.
There were 13 confirmed reports of gunfire from Friday to early Monday, with Dodson and another man killed and seven people wounded.
A 24-year-old man, whose name has not been released, was killed by gunfire around 6 p.m. Sunday on Park Street near Washington Square Park.
After Dodson was shot later Sunday night, someone drove him to Upstate University Hospital in a private vehicle; police then responded to the hospital at 11:47 p.m. after they learned he had been shot. Dodson later died at the hospital.
News of Dodson’s death spread quickly in the community on Monday. After Kornegay spoke with Dodson’s father, he asked everyone on the Central Baptist Church Family Facebook page to pray for the family.
“Beloved: With a heavy heart, I share with you that Erskine Dodson, Jr. was shot and killed last night/early morning,” Kornegay wrote. “Please pray for his family as they grieve the loss of their loved one. I’ve talked with his father — who is seeking to trust the Lord in this — yet his pain and agony is great.”
Dodson’s parents, Phyllis and Erskine Dodson Sr., live in Indianapolis, Indiana; he also has two sisters, one in Indianapolis and another in North Carolina, Kornegay said.
Dodson grew up in Syracuse, surrounded by a faithful family. He was a child when his father, Erskine Dodson Sr. — now a pastor in Indianapolis who also does missionary work in Africa — founded Sovereign Grace Baptist Church in Syracuse with 13 charter members in February 1983.
“The ministry moved from the community centers to the living room of the Dodson’s house, then to their garage, into the Syracuse Hill Apartment’s community center and finally to PEACE’s Eastside Center,” according to the church website.
Dodson and his family celebrated the ground breaking of the new Sovereign Grace Baptist Church building on Syracuse’s East Side on Easter Sunday morning in 1988, and then the first worship service there on Christmas Day the same year.
His parents left Syracuse in 1999 when his father accepted a teaching position at a bible college in Indianapolis, but the younger Dodson stayed in Syracuse. He eventually got married and divorced, but remained committed to raising his son and being a good dad, Kornegay said.
Dodson has been a member of Central Baptist for the last 10 years, the pastor said.
“He loved his family,” Kornegay said. “He loved his Lord, Jesus Christ. And he loved the church.”
His funeral will be held at Central Baptist Church, but details are still being planned through Garland Brothers Funeral Home.
While his family and church community continue to ask for prayers, Syracuse police ask anyone with information about the shooting that killed Dodson to call them at (315) 442-5222.
Have a tip or a story idea? Contact Catie O’Toole: cotoole@syracuse.com | text/call 315-470-2134 | Twitter | Facebook
The Link LonkJuly 28, 2020 at 07:25AM
https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2020/07/42-year-old-syracuse-shooting-victim-identified-as-hard-working-father-church-goer.html
42-year-old Syracuse shooting victim identified as hard-working father, church-goer, pastor says - syracuse.com
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