David Charles Earl

David Charles Earl passed away unexpectedly at his home in Nashville, TN on April 15, 2025. David was 37.
The oldest of 6 children, David was born in Akron, OH on December 10, 1987. At the age of 5 the family relocated to South Bend, IN where he grew up. During high school David took a winter term at one of the labs at the University of Notre Dame, learning about cancer research. This ignited a lifelong passion in David to understand the disease and search for therapies.
David studied Biochemistry at Grove City College and then obtained his PhD in Biological Chemistry at Vanderbilt University in 2018, pioneering new methods for discovery of anticancer molecules. After graduation David spent 7 years working for natural drug discovery start-up Adapsyn Bioscience in Hamilton Ontario, most recently as Director of Chemical Biology. This past fall David moved back to Nashville as Director of Platforms for Empath Biosciences, another natural drug discovery start-up, building out the drug discovery method he had helped to pioneer while studying at Vanderbilt.
David had broad interests and a deep capacity for learning, yet he was humble and talked about his work in plain English. Although a private person, David loved to cook and to host meals for family and friends. He collected eclectic recipe books and was continually expanding his repertoire of dishes. Family meant a great deal to David and he made it a point to visit and stay in touch with all of his siblings. David was a lifelong NBA fan and he also enjoyed playing fantasy football, playing cards and video games with his family, hoodies, sharp kitchen knives, and his youngest sister's unicorn drawings.
David was gentle, thoughtful, and generous. He was always willing to listen and take an interest in what interested you. He was also an excellent gift-giver, occasionally making one-of-a-kind gifts by hand.
David is survived by his parents Brian and Jackie Earl, his sister Kelly Beachy and husband Kenny and their daughter Hazel, his brother Nathan Earl and wife Anna and their son Lorenzo, his brother Jamie Earl, his brother Matthew Earl and wife Amy, and his sister Grace Earl.
Calling hours will be from 11:00-12:00 at Bubb Chapel, 3910 N Main St Mishawaka, IN on Friday April 25, 2025, followed by a memorial service at 12:00. Burial following at Southlawn Cemetery.
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