Dave was the youngest of three and lived in Santa Barbara, California, and Little Rock, Arkansas, however, spent most of childhood in Wahoo, Nebraska. He graduated from Wahoo High and went on to get his undergraduate degree at the Kearney State and Masters Degree from University of Nebraska at Lincoln. Dave also spent several years in the Army and National Guard from the early to mid 1960’s.
Dave married his wife Karen in 1965. They had 56 wonderful years together, before Karen’s passing in 2021. In 1969, their first child Mark, was born. After Dave finished school in Kearney, Nebraska, they moved their family to Lincoln, Nebraska. Shortly thereafter their second child, Deb, was born.
Dave taught in Kearney, Nebraska but most of his career in teaching was at Northeast High School in Lincoln, Nebraska. Dave taught several subjects over the years, including Aeroscience and Physics, as well as being the Science Department Head for several years.
Dave took early retirement in 1998. His retirement was spent doing a lot of reading, woodworking and spending time with his family. Dave enjoyed traveling and took some amazing trips over the years. Shortly after his retirement, Dave traveled to England and Scotland with his wife and daughter, which was a wonderful adventure. He also visited Northern Ireland, where a bit of genealogy work was done, but primarily spent time enjoying the beautiful sites and countryside and spending time with loved ones. Trips to Hawaii and Alaska were also made with best friends Jim and Sharon, as well as many destinations more local to home.
Dave was involved with the Masonic Lodge in Wahoo, Nebraska. Spending time at the “lake house” at Johnson Lake, near Lexington, Nebraska, was also another favorite pastime. Many hours were spent on the lake fishing, although more hours may have been spent helping everyone with baiting hooks and taking fish off the hooks, rather than any actual fishing!
Dave was the very proud grandfather to grandson Eli, who fondly called him “Pakaa”. Eli could always bring a smile to Pakaa’s face and Dave loved spending time with Eli!
Dave was known for his talkative nature and truly could chat with anyone. He enjoyed meeting new people and sharing stories with “new” friends as well as “old” friends and family.
David is survived by son Mark Hunter; daughter Deb (Mark) McClean; grandson Elijah McClean; sister Nancy (Bill) Parson; and numerous nieces and nephews. Dave is preceded in death by his parents, wife Karen and brother Jean (Nadine) Hunter.
Graveside Services will be held at Sunrise Cemetery in Wahoo, Nebraska on Wednesday, February 16, 2022, at 2:00 pm. Memorials to family for future designation.