Neil David DuBois

DuBois Neil David DuBois, 21, died in a car accident early Sunday near his home in rural Leesburg, VA. A former resident of Eden Prairie, Neil worked for his grandparents, Whitey and Margaret Hubert, who have a nursery and vineyard called Tarara near Leesburg. He'd been attending Northern Virginia Community College where he hoped to study business. Neil was passionate about everything he pursued, especially snowboarding. He and his littler brother, Casey, learned on the slopes at Hyland Hills in Bloomington, MN. They went on to snowboard camp in Oregon and mountains out west, including last year's trek to Breckenridge, CO. Last year, Neil had won a snowboarding competition out east and had just learned that a snowboard shop in Frederic planned to sponsor him for the upcoming season. Neil was born in Dunedin, FL, and grew up in Little Falls, St. Cloud, Washington, D.C. and the Twin Cities. He is survived by his brothers, Casey and Ben, sister Jaime, mother Janet, father John and John's wife, Julie - and grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends who will always treasure his smile, his energy and his free spirit. Services will be held on Thursday at Pax Christi Church in Eden Prairie beginning with a gathering of friends and family at 3 p.m. followed by Mass at 4 and a light dinner and a chance to share stories. Memorials in Neil's name are preferred to Wilderness Inquiry, a St. Paul based group that takes people of all abilities into the wild places that Neil loved. Friends and loved ones are welcome to bring small tokens of affection that they might want to be with Neil's remains in nearby Pleasant Hill Cemetery.
This obituary was originally published in the Star Tribune.