David Prescott Dempsey

1955 - 2020

DAVID PRESCOTT DEMPSEY David Prescott Dempsey, born Feb. 20, 1955, at Enloe Hospital in Chico, CA, died Friday May 8 when he was struck by a vehicle while cycling on Highway 32. Dave attended school in Chico at Sierra View Elementary, Bidwell Jr. High and Pleasant Valley HS, from which he graduated in 1973. Dave had a strong sense of adventure from an early age, abetted by family camping and backpacking trips to the mountains and deserts of California and beyond. While completing his Bachelor of Science at UC Davis in Atmospheric Science and Mathematics, he managed to also enjoy a semester at the University of Rochester and a 5-month internship at Mercury at the Nevada Test Site. While working on his Ph.D. at the University of Washington (1985), he took a year off to travel extensively in New Zealand, Singapore, Nepal, Thailand, and Australia. Upon graduation, Dave accepted a 10-week fellowship to work with scientists in China, before beginning a Post-Doctoral fellowship at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, CO. Giving generously of himself to students and colleagues alike, Dave served as a highly respected professor of meteorology at San Francisco State University from 1989 until his retirement in June of 2018. In 1994 Dave married Rebecca Douglass, and the pair continued the active and adventurous outdoor life loved by both. When their sons were born in 1997 and 1999, Dave's greatest joy was introducing his children to reading, camping, hiking, and backpacking. Dave's passion for weather and the outdoors was matched by a passion for photography, and for sharing his experiences. In retirement, he enjoyed sharing detailed and well-researched photographic accounts of his travels, reviewed family history with his parents, and planned trips to every continent with his wife. Dave and Rebecca had recently returned safely from South America, where pandemic border closures unexpectedly extended their Antarctic cruise by seven days and 1500 miles. Dave is survived by his wife Rebecca Douglass, sons Kylan and Griffen Dempsey, parents Wesley and Phyllis Dempsey, brothers Tom (wife Carol), Jim, and Paul (Leslie), and nephews Ian, Tristan, and Duncan (Brittney) Dempsey. Donations may be made in Dave's memory to the Union of Concerned Scientists or the Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve. No memorial is planned at this time due to travel restrictions and the Corona virus.