David was born on April 15, 1975 and passed away on Tuesday, October 20, 2009.
In his childhood David was the most tender of children. When Ravenna was once ill as a 5 yr old in Southern California, David (age 3) put a huge circle of flowers he hand picked around her when she was sleeping so that when she awoke she would wake up in the middle of a circle of hand picked fleurs. Ravenna and David only 2 yrs apart shared a bedroom telling each other night time stories before sleeping, had their own fruit stand to sell their home grown tomatoes, washed their horses together, and had their own secret language. He was the glue . As they grew older they became confidantes, he always called her for advice on anything and everything knowing that she unconditionally loved and adored him. She was the safe place in the world where he could be himself. He idealized her and also equally Teased her. He respected the fact that she built her own private practice and always told her that he liked her organizational skills.
With his younger brother Nik they had a love of of similar hobbies when it came to outdoor activities, they shared hiking mountains, marathon running, biking, health foods , frisbee competitions and of course nice, pretty girls! David and Nik made Ninja and martial arts videos growing up, had a share of jokes and laughter, and they both decided upon the sunshine and opportunites of Southern California (its in the blood since John is from Huntington Beach and Carolyn is from Oakland and they met in Berkeley) .
As a 1 yr old baby in New Mexico where he was born, David was cuddled non stop by his 3 yr old sister ( Ravenna) , she adored him. They were as Danielle Mercer points out to me today over the phone: "Bosom Buddies". David looked up to his dad John and went on Landscaping jobs with him in Costa Mesa California, helping Dad load up the truck, push the wheel barrow, and listen to the Rolling Stones in Dad's Green Truck. When they moved to Vashon JOhn made Davids derby car for the island derby races, and they would go skate boarding together with BOB LONG down lisa beula hill and practice base ball for hours, while Ravenna was in the outfield catching the balls. John taught David art and David became very skilled & talented at drawing. John took David, Ravenna & Nik camping at the American River and Third Beach: & Dad and David shared a love for laughter and living life to the FULLEST !!
David was very affectionate and playful as a baby and ran around trying to give everyone hugs, he loved being in his Mommy's arms (Carolyn) and often would run into the surf head first in Costa Mesa California, only to run back into her lap and then bounce back into the surf giggling, and then back into her warm arms. He liked to be next to her heart and would play with her hair. David had a voracious appetite for mom's banana smoothies, chocolate chip cookies, and orange oat meal cookies. He figured he did not need to leave any for Ravenna or Nik. As a baby he was very independent running around but always going back to give his mommy Carolyn a hug and kiss to be cradled in her arms. He had a huge head of White blonde hair, bronzed skin, huge green eyes, and a vulnerability due to his innocence and endearing belief in the beauty & goodness of life & people that never got lost!
As a teen ager he would sit on the roof top and gaze at the stars, it was his way to get away and have his own time. I remember liking the fact that he literally thought very creatively outside of the box and challenged convention when it needed to be challenged. In the last months of his life: In early summer 2009, David verbally told me he thought that "John and Carolyn made a nice life, a nice upbringing for us, and that they really lived life the way it should be lived", he said to me "They did it right" and said he "wanted to achieve that: full of nature, a beautiful home, good friends, and a lot of beauty, love and nurturance in a safe community that gave back". David referred to Vashon all the time, he "loved Bob's Bakery, the Hardware Store, Lisabeula, KVI and stated he would like to live in a small town where the community really cares about investing in each other". As his big sister: I always knew that David would make the best Daddy /Father, as he loved children, and I knew he would make a great husband (I was excited for him to hopefully get married and become a father) he had been in many great relationships with wonderful women who were smart and amazing, he was fiercely loyal and protective, a great listener, and loads of fun coupled with seriousness when you needed it. He was hugely compassionate. He liked the simple life and was ready to be headed down that path toward what we grew up with. I was excited for him to be Jacksons uncle !!!
David was a resident of Santa Monica, California. David had a love of nature, art, drawing, reading, swimming, running, discussing ideas and making people laugh. He was a Conversationalist. He was adored by his family and large network of friends. He loved the family dog "Cookie" and had a love for animals. He had a gorgeous smile, quick wit, bright green eyes, engaging personality and energizing presence. He liked to be outdoors, was a loyal best friend to his siblings, had more good friends than you could count, liked helping others, enjoyed going to church, and offered support wherever it was needed most (he always liked to help out the under dog) !!
He studied Drama in college, he received a Drama scholarship, acted in plays, got his Bachelors Degree, after attending WWU in Bellingham he worked in banking in Seattle, lived in GreenLake right next door to his sister Ravenna where they would run the lake daily and go out to breakfast before work each day. After this he moved to Santa Monica California next to his brother Nik, to pursue more college, and he began helping inner city youth in LA that needed mentors, and he enjoyed surfing with his brother Nik.
He called his sister every day during her pregnancy very excited about the fact that Jackson was on his way. In the last 6 months of his life in February 2009 He made a family trip with Ravenna, Nik, Carolyn and John to Kauai Hawaii where Ravenna was 5 months pregnant with Jackson. The family reunion was meaningful: they all went hiking daily, cooked Seafood dinners every night in Ravenna's condo (David had a matching condo downstairs with Nik), the family went swimming, snorkeling, and saw Albatross and amazing sea turtles. The memory Ravenna has most is waking up to David outside in the hammock in the sunshine, sea side: reading a NY Times best seller each morning, sipping coffee and wanting to discuss new ideas. He considered moving to Hawaii after this visit because he liked the slower pace compared to LA and also how the access to nature was much greater. He began to look into jobs there. After ravenna and nik left, david stayed behind w mom and dad for several days, the 3 of them enjoyed cayaking ,quality time, camping and hiking!
David also flew out and made a surprise visit after this in May to Ravenna's apartment in Alki for a surpise visit to Ravenna at the tail end of her pregnancy to check in with her and give her a hug. He teased her about her pregnancy clothes, he wanted to go to Starbucks for coffee, he thought she multi tasked too much between her I phone, I pad, and Laptop for her job and then they took a beach walk together. The next morning his green eyes gleamed so bright and beautiful like shiny stars in the sky, he gave me a hug, looked at Jackson in my belly and teasingly said "weird" and then gave me a big smile...and he was out the door. You are sorely missed dear David!
