David Laird

As I put up the Christmas tree this year, I noted that David's love of Christmas continues on through all of the beautiful decorations I have of his. I put up the bubble lights -- a real joy as they reminded us of our grandparents who also had them -- and hung several ornaments that used to be his. Among them are the Wallace sterling silver Christmas bells. David collected them and they have a beautiful tinkling sound -- just as you would imagine a Christmas bell to sound. These have been...

David was my Psychology lab partner my first semester at Grinnell. I imagine this was a random assignment, but one which was, for me, amazingly fortuitous. I made a life-long friend. Our face-to-face contacts were infrequent - a bike trip cross-country when David and Rodney came for lunch, a stop on Nikki´s college trip when we spent a great evening, and, of course, Grinnell Reunions. David´s constant friendship, care and compassion were apparent when I had a long illness; he called...

David was my older brother. He set the trends in our house -- what music to listen to, stereos, 10-speed bicycles, and all things creative. I didn't tell him until I was an adult, but he was the one I copied. He was kind to everyone, and super smart. I know his enthusiasm for making art and music, dancing, biking, and enjoying time with his kids filled his life fully. On top of that, he loved all of that technical stuff that electrical engineers do, although it was Greek to me. I loved...

I remember David as one of my earliest and kindest friends from grade school. He was not only a gifted scholar and fine musician, he was someone I truly looked forward to seeing at reunions, etc. Sending my best to David's loved ones...