DePayne Middleton-Doctor

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DePayne MiddletonDoctor

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Reverend DePayne Vontrese Middleton-Doctor (December 15, 1965 – June 17, 2015) was an ordained minister, school administrator, and choir member at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church who was assassinated along with eight other congregants during a Wednesday night Bible study session by white supremacist Dylann Roof. At 49 years old, she was a mother of four daughters whose voice was described as "so angelic it could move the very depth of your heart." DePayne Middleton-Doctor was born on December 15, 1965, in South Carolina, the middle child of three daughters born to Reverend Leroy and Frances Middleton. She grew up attending an AME church west of Charleston, where her father served as a minister. She earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Columbia College in 1989 and a master's degree in organizational management from Southern Wesleyan University in 1994. Middleton-Doctor had a distinguished career in public service and education. She worked as a former manager at the U.S. Department of Commerce and served as Charleston County's director of the Community Development Block Grant Program before retiring in 2005. In that role, she helped administer grants aimed at assisting the county's poorest residents with problems they couldn't otherwise afford, such as roof repairs. She later worked as an admissions coordinator for Southern Wesleyan University's Charleston learning center. She also served as an experienced grant writer, consulting with local school districts, and worked as a data manager and analyst for the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). Her calling to ministry was fulfilled when she became an ordained minister, first serving at Mt. Mariah Missionary Baptist Church in North Charleston. She joined Emanuel AME Church in March 2015, just three months before her death, where she ministered and sang in the church choir. On June 17, 2015, Middleton-Doctor attended the Wednesday night Bible study at Emanuel AME Church when Dylann Roof opened fire, killing her and eight other worshippers. She left behind four daughters: Gracyn, Kaylin, Hali, and Czana Doctor. She was a resident of Hollywood, South Carolina. In 2020, Middleton-Doctor was honored in the South Carolina African American History Calendar, designed by the South Carolina Department of Education to identify African American role models for educators, parents, and students.