Dave, 75, died from complications of pancreatic cancer on June 1, 2019. Dave was a smokejumper in Redmond 1965-66, a Missoula smokejumper 1967-68 and 1981.

During 1970 Dave worked as a skydiving instructor, jump pilot, and master parachute rigger for Parachutes Inc., Orange, Massachusetts. Dave was a BLM Alaska smokejumper 1971-80.

From 1980 until his retirement in 1998 Dave worked in the National Smokejumper Technical Position at the U.S. Forest Service Technology & Development Center (MTDC) in Missoula. While at MTDC Dave oversaw projects that developed an array of smokejumping equipment and procedures. This included development of the FS-14 parachute, multiple smokejumper aircraft evaluations, and production of training videos for smokejumper pilots, spotters, and smokejumper canopy handling procedures. In 1991 Dave received the Forest Service "Chief's Award" for transfer of new technology to the Smokejumping Program in Ulan Bator, Mongolia.

Dave retired from the Forest Service in 1998 and enjoyed biking, hiking and wildlife photography.