David Cramer Getzendanner

David Cramer Getzendanner (1926-2024) passed away peacefully in Salem at age 97 of natural causes on April 25 after a long life filled with spiritual service, devotion to family, and intellectual curiosity.

Born in Davenport, Iowa, David spent much of his childhood along the Mississippi River. Moving as a teenager to Salem in 1942 when his father became the pastor of Saint Mark Lutheran Church, he attended North Salem High School where he first met Betty Lou Edwards. Reunited after her time in the Ice Follies and his graduation from Midland College and seminary as a Lutheran minister, they married in December 1949. Together they raised three children, being loving role models for them and expanding their horizons through family trips to Texas, along east and west coasts, and across Canada. At the time of Betty's passing in 2021, David and Betty had just celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary.

David dedicated his life to serving as a Lutheran minister, starting or restoring vibrant Lutheran congregations. In Spokane, he founded Messiah Lutheran and oversaw the building of the church. At Zion Lutheran in The Dalles, the congregation grew substantially and an innovative choir school was a huge success. New activities at Trinity Lutheran in Everett transformed the church into a hub of the community. Returning to his hometown of Salem, Pastor Dave oversaw a renewal program at Faith Lutheran in Keizer and was known for both his counseling and sermons. Over his life, he wrote over 2000 sermons covering all aspects of people's daily spiritual life.

An avid sportsman, David was an acknowledged expert in fishing, duck and pheasant hunting, crabbing, and clamming -- passions he pursued in eastern Oregon along the Deschutes River, on the Puget Sound and numerous western Washington rivers, and along the sea coasts of both states. The stories of his adventures brought laughter and inspiration to those who had the pleasure of hearing them.

During retirement, David and Betty traveled extensively, including two trips around the world to the South Pacific, Australia, Asia, Africa, and Europe. Combining the love of travel with his skills as an accomplished genealogist, David wrote four books on the history of the Getzendanner family, notably meeting family and doing research on-site in Switzerland, the Netherlands, the UK, Australia, and throughout the United States. In 1997, he organized a gathering of over 200 family members from around the world at the original American Getzendanner family homestead in Frederick, Maryland.

In recent years, David enjoyed living at the Capital Manor retirement community in Salem, surrounded by friends, many of whom he had known since high school. Always engaged with friends and family who loved him, David recently stayed in active touch with his children, grand-children and great-grandchildren, both through their visits to Salem and through weekly GetzFamily Zoom meetings that allowed all the generations to drop in on their favorite Great-Grand-Dad to share the latest news from Alaska, California, France, London and Washington.

Overall, David's life was 97 years of a life well-lived, filled with service, compassion, curiosity, and love.

David is survived by his children Martin Getzendanner, Annette Janka and Joel Getzendanner, as well as six grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.