David Bache

David Howard Bache

"One great, strong, unselfish soul in every community would actually redeem the world." -Elbert Hubbard

David Howard Bache, 87, of West Lafayette, died on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012.

David was the fourth of six children, born June 4, 1924, to Thomas Cartwright Bache and Edith Louise Davies in the coal mining community of Nanticoke, Pennsylvania. His parents were grocers and farmers and his childhood spent assisting with both ventures colored the rest of his life. Despite a difficult family life and the tragic death of his mother at age five, he found mentors and surrogate parents in his maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Elmy Bache, and among his father's employees, and always credited these people for shaping him and his life, and instilling the values of honesty and the joy of work.

He came to Purdue University in West Lafayette to study agriculture, and here he met the McKee family--Professor James Hugh McKee, his wife Emma, and their daughter Emma "Molly" McKee, whom he married on March 9, 1945. David enlisted in the military during WW II and was prepared for but never saw combat. After his military discharge, David and Molly returned to Pennsylvania with their infant son William, born in 1946, to manage and work on Maywood Farms, owned by his father. David and Molly loved farming and the family grew; daughters Molly "Jane" was born in 1949, and Susan in 1951. Later, daughter Sally was born in Indiana in 1960. The family they made together is blessed with the closeness and affection missing from his own youth.

When familial frictions ended David's farming career, the family returned to West Lafayette and Purdue, moving into the McKee household, where David and Molly both lived out the rest of their lives under the McKee family roof.

He acquired a PhD in Agricultural Economics in 1968, and secured a position on the faculty of Purdue University, primarily working with Purdue's Agricultural Extension Service. His special area of expertise was in the economics of pork production. He received the Hovde award in 1985. His work was also recognized by awards from: The Indiana Farm Management Association, The Purdue Extension Specialists Association, The American Agricultural Economics Association, and The Indiana Pork Producers. David retired from Purdue University in 1988.

After the untimely death of Molly in 1986, David married Mary Eleanor Shoaff, and they created a lasting marriage of mutual affection and respect.

David was graced with a keen intellect and a gentle wit. He would rather work than play; always the farmer at heart, he loved maintaining his West Lafayette property. His devotion to family history inspired him to research the genealogy of both sides of his children's family. He was a kind, just, moral person who embodied all the best qualities of a true liberal.

He is survived by his wife Mary Eleanor Bache of Asheville, NC; sister Dorothy Derrico of Allentown, PA; half-brother Carter Bache of Bensalem, PA; children William McKee Bache of Tucson, AZ; Molly Jane Sanford of Dayton, OH, Susan Elizabeth Brewer of Portland, ME, and Sally Ann Bache of Raleigh, NC; six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He will be deeply missed by all who knew him.

Private service to follow. Gifts in memory can be made to National Public Radio--which he listened to daily until his death.