My deepest sympathies for the family. I hope you remember Dave's warmth and friendly smile during this difficult time.

Dave was well respected , and thought of as a kind and generous man by all his Rutgers colleagues.

We are stardust we are golden— no one at Rutgers libraries cared more for the success of all our work than Dave. During my 30 years there I worked with him a half dozen times— all critical junctures for me, daily activity for him. When he was part of a group I knew I would find solid ground because of his up front, super knowledge, not only of the technical details but also of the institutional realities.  He would unfailingly point me in the right direction, a most rare quality. He accomplished much in our systems unit I know, but his kind concern, hard work, and honesty also allowed me to accomplish much more than I would have otherwise.  A very special man. 

Dave was among the few people who brought me to the Rutgers Libraries. Ever since then I found Dave was THE most valuable person to go to for help, for something that even sometime he had to dig into to find out, and for ever enlightening encouragement. He was one of a few who I have been thinking to say a big THANK YOU to when I retire, now I lost that chance. But I still want to say, Thank You, Dave, for everything, and hope you can hear. Wish you all well and rest in peace.

I only met David about 8 years ago when I moved back home from CT, It was thru our Love of LIVE music that we shared our joy together. No matter where I was if the music was playing, I would see David there groovin and smiling.

He had an ear for really good music and we had many conversations of shows that were upcoming and past. He would say " Thanks for putting the info about the show up, that is how I learned of it " ...he called me " The Merry Messenger" it made me smile.

He will be missed in our music community, he was loved by everyone ! Always so kind and a gentleman. Words were not needed with David, he was a man of not many as we all connected thru the music playing on stage at the Ardmore and many other venues ( He was a devoted fan of Dead and Co, Splintered Sunlight, Lovelight, Melvin Seals / JGB CCJ, David Bromberg, Allman Bros, Warren Haynes and many more. ) .

I know he loved this tune, I remember standing next to him when it was being performed...

Attics of My Life by the Grateful Dead

In the attics of my life
Full of cloudy dreams; unreal
Full of tastes no tongue can know
And lights no eye can see
When there was no ear to hear
You sang to me
I have spent my life
Seeking all that's still unsung
Bent my ear to hear the tune
And closed my eyes to see
When there were no strings to play
You played to me
In the book of love's own dreams
Where all the print is blood
Where all the pages are my days
And all my lights grow old
When I had no wings to fly
You flew to me
You flew to me
In the secret space of dreams
Where I dreaming lay amazed
When the secrets all are told
And the petals all unfold
When there was no dream of mine
You dreamed of me


RIP my friend, when I am on the dance floor...

I will close my eyes and you will forever be with me in the spirit of the music.

Lyn & Bob Messina

I was extremely saddened by Dave’s passing. I knew him to be a very kind and intelligent colleague who was very generous with his time when you had a problem. He never hesitated to add some humor when your proposed solutions were way off base as mine sometimes were. 

He will really be missed. I will hold on to an image of him sitting under a big old tree at our picnic strumming his guitar and singing tunes, most importantly from the Greatful Dead. He certainly was one of a kind! 

It was my pleasure to work with Dave for many years. He was a friend as well as a colleague and together we shared both happy and difficult personal times. His legacy at Rutgers Libraries will endure given his dedication and loyalty. He will be missed. Ann Montanaro Staples

Mrs. Coyle (Hoover), Diane and Jennifer,
My heartfelt condolences for the lose of your beloved son, brother, and uncle David. I was fortunate enough to have lived a few streets from the family in Pennsauken and spending time at the Hoover house with my friend Diane. I have many fond memories of get togethers at your home with David present, including St. Stephen's carnivals. I also had the pleasure of knowing David growing up and attending Camden Catholic High School. David always played beautiful music for the church and, more recently, my husband and I attended Christmas Mass where David played the guitar so beautifully along with his niece Jennifer who plays the flute. Their ensemble of .. "oh holy night" made the hair on my arms stand up, filled my heart with warmth, and brought a tear to my eye. I know David is now in heaven with his father, brother Donald, and wife Helen and is looking down on us all, and, at peace.

I was so sad to learn of Dave's passing. He was a good friend at Rutgers Libraries and would always stop and say hello when he was in our building. He could light up a room with his smile and friendly personality. RUL has lost one of its best and brightest.

I worked directly with Dave for over 15 years. There was no systems problem he couldn’t solve. He was as tireless and dedicated in his approach to systems management as he was brilliant. I commented once on how accessible he was night and day if we needed him. His response was that his computer was beside his bed and an alarm would wake him if there was any problem with a server or the library proxy and he would wake up immediately and solve it. In the early days of proxy servers and through many versions of Rutgers authentication, he ensured faculty and student access to millions of dollars of scholarly resources. He managed the first link in the chain to the critical research our faculty needed to support their discoveries. How many breakthroughs in science, medicine and the humanities relied on Dave’s efforts? Too many to count! Two accomplishments stand out to me: his absolute brilliance in reconciling authentication mechanisms between Rutgers and the medical school when the two were integrated and his support in getting our network up and running after Hurricane Sandy. A good university can only become a great university when it has a strong supporting infrastructure. Dave played a pivotal role in making Rutgers a great university. He also played a pivotal role in making Digital Library Systems a great place to work. Dave was legendary for his sense of humor and his kindness. He was the legendary heart of gold beating beneath a gruff exterior. He has left a deep, unfillable hole at the Rutgers University Libraries. Grace Agnew

Dave was one of the first people I met when I started to work at Rutgers. He was part of a small group of people with whom I was friendly. Dave was pleasant & easy going. He loved the Grateful Dead & golf. I was happy for him when he met Helen & am glad they had some good years together. He’ll be missed.

I knew Dave beginning with his undergraduate years at Rutgers Camden and later as a valued colleague in the Rutgers Library System. Indeed, it's my belief that my recommendation was to some degree a factor in his initial appointment to what what the Rutgers Library Systems department in the mid-80's. Later I had continuing contact with Dave (as my friend John Gibson describes so well above), recall his marriage, being a "Deadhead", and sharing laments about the long drives from South Jersey to Piscataway.

Every recollection I have is with fondness and joy at having known him for so long.  Jim Nettleman, Professor Emeritus

Extending my deepest sympathy to the family! Praying for strength and healing during this difficult time.

I met David around 1997, for years he would work a day each week across the office from me at the Robeson Library in Camden. David would express his love for golf and his desire to get in a game after work. David had a helping heart and would always work his best to find a solution to any problem even if it was outside his area of expertise. I would only go to Dave for a problem I could not resolve myself and he would ALWAYS take care of it. I will miss David and feel like he left us too soon. 

Although I did not spend much time with Dave, as a fellow music minister I do know how dedicated he was to our music ministry here at CCHS. He was a respected musician, a true collaborator of music, and always friendly. I know that the music ministry and entire congregation will miss his smiling face and spiritual contributions. Thank you Dave for your positive impact on my term at CCHS.