Scott David Saylor

Washington D.C. native Scott David Saylor, a graduate student living in Morgantown, West Virginia accidentally drowned on July 14, 2024, while swimming at Summersville State Park. He was 44 years old and beginning his fifth and final year toward a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology at WVU. His laboratory work and professional ambition were focused on curing disease and ameliorating suffering.

Scott was born and spent his early years in Washington, D.C. He lived in Oberlin, Ohio; Osaka and Tokyo, Japan; Monterey and San Francisco, California; and most recently, Morgantown, West Virginia. Fluent in Japanese, Scott was honored by Oberlin with a Shansi Fellowship for two years teaching English at a Japanese university. Scott enjoyed cooking Asian food and traveling. He was a compassionate and caring friend, free of social bias, welcoming to all.

A competitive diver and swimmer in his youth, the adult Scott delighted in using his strong physique and skilled strokes to glide for hours across ponds, lakes, rivers and oceans (the Outer Banks and Delaware coast). Although the precise medical trigger of his death is unknown, he surely died doing what he loved.

Scott was also a talented musician, singing and playing piano and guitar, especially songs of Stevie Nicks and other Fleetwood Mac hits.

Scott was graduated from Washington’s St. Albans School in 1998, and then double-majored in Asian Studies and Chemistry at Oberlin College (2002). He earned a Master of Arts in Translation and Localization Management from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, California (2008). Scott was self-employed as a Japanese-to-English translator of complex medical and financial matters for over 10 years. He began his doctoral studies and research at West Virginia University in fall 2020.

Scott is survived by his parents, David and Virginia “Jinny” (Lauer) Saylor; his sisters, Elizabeth Saylor and Tracy Piatkowski; brother-in-law Adam Piatkowski; niece, Sophie; and nephews, Ethan, Liam, Ryan and Nicholas; his partner, Roadsney Ceballos; and his rescue pups, William and Bradley. All who loved Scott take comfort in knowing he is reunited with his cherished dogs, Vinnie, Heathcliff, and Rodney.

A celebration of Scott’s life will take place on Friday, September 27, 2024, at Joseph Gawler’s Sons Funeral Home 5130 Wisconsin Avenue 20016 Washington, D.C. beginning at 1:00 pm. All who loved Scott are welcome to join. www.josephgawlers.com

The Saylor Family wishes to extend its sincere gratitude to all the first responders and search and rescue teams of the West Virginia State Police, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, and Army Corp of Engineers. Please consider sharing in our appreciation and honoring Scott’s love of dogs by making a donation to First Responder Therapy Dogs www.firstrespondertherapydogs.org.