David James Hentz

David James Hentz AKA Reverend Sweet Velvet Love was born on May 11, 1967, in Philadelphia, PA. David lived the majority of childhood in Florida, so he considered himself a good ole Southern boy, he was always saying "I love me some gator!". Although he considered himself Southern, he bled green and as soon as his children could talk, he taught them the Eagles chant. His Southern/Philadelphia accent will always remain evident in the way our children say strawberry and song.
David's love of cooking he got from his Nan and man could he cook. The number of times people said "this is the most delicious thing I have ever eaten" is countless and then you would eat something else he made and have to say it again. If you didn't get a chance to taste his cooking, I'm sorry, it was damn good. His balls will forever be the best balls many have ever eaten.
David viewed himself as a protector. If he saw I was upset he would ask, "Do I have to punch someone?" My response always being, "No David you don't!" It worked almost every time, almost. He would say, "Deb, people get punched every day!"
He leaves a gaping hole in his entire Ciasullo family as well as a hole in the menu for holidays. Nobody wants to try and compete with his gravy and meatballs. He has forever left us with what will be disappointing meatballs, Brussels sprouts and turkey gravy.
He will be painfully missed by his mother Gale as is the case when a mother loses part of herself too soon. His sisters Jamie and Jenna he would do it all again for them.
If you knew David, got him and were friends with him then he loved you. He loved his friends with every morsel of his being and would give the shirt off his back. He tested every boundary but deep down loved them. If you crossed him, well there is that.
His love for his family was palpable and to him, his greatest accomplishment and most cherished experiences. Adeline Hendrix Hentz and Sebastian Gabriel Hentz, his remarkable, resilient beautiful children are wise beyond their years. His children will continue to "rock on with their bad selves" as was his response when they accomplished something. He thanked me almost every day for his children. One of my favorite quotes from him, "I never knew having kids would make me cry like a bitch."
His spontaneous, adventurous nature and willingness to just do what you want to do attitude and not care what people think was what drew me to him. He raised his children to think that way. If you think it makes you happy just do it. They had countless costumes they wore all year. His thought if that's what they want to wear that's what they get to wear.
His appreciation for the beauty around us was evident in his excitement every year when flowers would begin to bloom. He would go for a walk and pick all the flowers he saw, not caring whose flower beds he was taking them from and present them to me, with his huge smile and say "Smell them! Smell them!" When his children were born, he began to take them on this ritual and have them present the bouquets to me instead of him presenting them.
His appreciation of beauty is evident in a story when Sebastian was around 6. He was playing out front with a bunch of kids. Sebastian turned and noticed the sunset and yelled, "Stop everyone and look, the sunset is beautiful!!!" Sebastian stopped mid game and stood and watched it while all the other kids continued with the frenzied game. David and I luckily witnessed this, and David said to me as we watched our son admiring the sunset, "He gets it Deb, he gets it."
At father daughter dances, David would have Adeline stand on his feet, from the very first one they attended. This continued always, even though it was comically awkward. Adeline, he will always be there for you to stand on his feet. He will always be there for you to dry your hands on his shirt.
David always put things off but somehow got them done in the nick of time. In talking with Sebastian the other day, I found out that he feels the ultimate most important thing a father can teach his son is how to tie a tie. I was heartbroken when he told me this yesterday. He then said, "Mom he got to show me." I asked when? was it last week? He said "no, Thursday night before I went to bed. It was the last interaction I had with him." Sebastian, he will always be there to tie your tie.
To my lovely lovely children, you were the light of his life as was I. His journey here has ended but has opened up a new one for us.
David lived his life with no reservations. He partied like a Rock Star. His passion for the experience of life led him to take things on full speed without blinking an eye or ever looking back. The intensity of his spirit allowed him to feel love and life far deeper than the average and, on many levels, for better or for worse. He never ever stayed on the porch. He always ran with the big dogs. He often claimed to be a god, The god of hellfire. Lived his life as a doctor, they called him Dr Love. He was the son, of a son, of a sailor. He was always holding the ace of spades. He was my soul mate. He was the love of my life. He was a one of a kind.
Join us in a Celebration of the Life of David James Hentz on Saturday, April 13, 2024. The party will start at 2:00 pm at Billy Murphy's Irish Saloon 3333 Conrad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19129. A Memorial Service will take place at 3:00 pm. In true Rock and Roll form David's wishes were to have a party in his honor. He wanted laughter, loud music, dancing and lots and lots of hugs to be the event, lots of tears are a given. Please dress in a style that David would approve, meaning no black. Anything else goes, please keep in mind this is a man that wore a cow print suit to a wedding. His favorite color was purple, and I don't believe he ever met a shirt that was too loud. Please RSVP if you can help with the planning the success of party? Love to everyone!
In lieu of flowers donation may be made in David's memory to his family through the link on this website would be greatly appreciated.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of David, please visit our floral store.
If you would like to make a donation in memory of David James Hentz, please visit the
Tribute Fund.