David Giffey

David Giffey

December 20, 1941 - July 19, 2024

ARENA - Renowned artist, activist, journalist, beloved husband, stepfather and friend, David Giffey of Arena, WI, died peacefully surrounded by family on Friday, July 19, 2024.

Born on December 20, 1941, in Fond du Lac, WI, and raised on the Giffey dairy farm, David grounded his actions in love, kindness, and ethical clarity.

Drafted into the American War in Vietnam, David channeled his combat trauma into a lifetime of activism. A founding member of the Madison chapter of Veterans for Peace, Giffey often visited high schools throughout the state of Wisconsin as a "counter-recruiter," teaching students about alternatives to joining the military. His book, "Long Shadows: Veterans' Paths to Peace," includes testimonials of veterans who served in wars from the Spanish Civil War through the Iraq War. The book contains a Foreword by historian Howard Zinn, who praised it for giving voice to veterans' anti-war sentiments. Giffey created a lasting tribute to peace at The Highground, Wisconsin's Vietnam Veterans memorial, where he designed the Dove Mound, an earthen, dove-shaped mound inspired by the effigy mounds of native Wisconsin tribes and the Old Testament imagery of the dove as a symbol for peace.

Raised in the Catholic church, David sought spiritual meaning by learning about and practicing a wide range of religions, traveling as far as India before discovering an affinity with Greek Orthodox Christianity. He was particularly interested in the practice of iconography, an ancient form of religious painting that he learned from monks in Mt. Athos, Greece.

As an iconographer, Giffey painted thousands of icons and murals commissioned for church interiors throughout the Midwest and as far away as Athens, Greece, becoming one of the most sought-after painters of the art form in the United States. Giffey's most comprehensive work of iconography adorns the interior of the Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Madison, WI, where he worked for an estimated 8,000 hours over the course of four decades, decorating the walls and ceilings of the building where he worshiped. A 2018, feature article in the newspaper, Isthmus, praised Giffey's work in the church as "one of the region's most spectacular artistic achievements, a sprawling and breathtaking work of Byzantine iconography. Perhaps most impressive, it is the work of one artist."

Prior to becoming an artist, Giffey worked with the Migrant Farm Workers movement in Wisconsin and Texas, helping legendary labor activist Cesar Chavez to establish labor rights for farm workers. In addition to art and activism, Giffey worked extensively as a journalist throughout his life, first as a reporter in the Fox River Valley, then for Stars and Stripes during his time in Vietnam, and most recently as editor of The Home News, a weekly newspaper covering the Wisconsin River Valley near Spring Green, where he won multiple awards in recognition of the newspaper's reporting on community interests and for his weekly column, "Another Story." Giffey taught journalism at the South Madison Boys & Girls club, leading to the creation of a monthly collection of student writing, "The Youth Journal."

His work in South Madison includes a series of murals he painted, tracing South Madison's African American history over generations. One of Giffey's most impactful works of activism was also one of his most solitary. During the Iraq wars, he regularly walked along a barren stretch of Highway 14, regardless of the weather, carrying a large sign with one word written in block letters: "PEACE." During his self-described "Peace Walks," Giffey endured taunts, ridicule, pelting with trash and even threats from passing motorists, but others who witnessed his protest describe the inspiration he gave them to carry on their struggle for justice to this day.

David was a devoted husband, stepfather and friend. He is survived by his wife, Nancy; his two stepsons, David Goodfriend (Susan Emmer) and Michael Goodfriend (Nancy Rodriguez); and four grandchildren, Benjamin, Ari, Noah and Elijah.

In lieu of flowers and gifts, the Giffey family would appreciate donations made in his memory to the Clarence Kailin chapter of Veterans For Peace in Madison: www.madisonvfp.org Veterans for Peace-Madison PO Box 1811 Madison, WI, 53701-1811.

Online condolences available at www.staffordfuneralhomes.com.