I’ve known Dave as long as I’ve worked in the Dept., but I really got to know him and his legendary organizational skills when he became Dept. Chair in 2002.  Not long after he became Chairman, I forwarded him an email about review letters he needed to write and the due date.  I didn’t get a response but I didn’t think much of it because my emails are often ignored.  As the due date approached, I mentioned to Dave that the letters were due on March 19th and got a terse “I’ll do them on the 23rd”.  The typical “this is getting you no where” conversation ensued.  Dave had put letter writing on his schedule for the 23rd and that was that.  When the Queen B’s in the Dean’s Office got wind that Dave had no intention of meeting their deadline, I was told that I had to MAKE Dave write the letters by the 19th.  A quick vision played through my head of me chasing Dave down the hall, duct taping a pencil to his hand, and commanding WRITE!  Yeah, that wasn’t gonna work. 

The next time I saw Dave I told him that I was being hounded by the Dean’s Office.  He told me not to worry about it.  I was plenty worried, but the 19th came and went and no flying monkeys came streaming through the office windows.  I did receive a few snide remarks from the Dean’s Office and the following June was copied on a email to Dave stating that they wanted him to address my inability to make him meet their deadlines on my performance evaluation.  Dave never mentioned that email, nor did he mention that deficiency on my performance evaluation – much to the chagrin of the weenies in the Dean’s Office, I’m certain. I realized going forward that Dave knew exactly what was important and would act accordingly.  I had always respected Dave, and that incident increased my respect for him a thousandfold.  Thanks Dave for always protecting the minions from low-level gas-bag bureaucrats.  I will forever miss your friendship, guidance, steadiness, and immense snarkiness.  Godspeed. 

Dave was my thesis advisor over 30 years ago and he continued to be my mentor throughout my professional career as a hydrogeologist in environmental consulting. As a teacher and mentor he balanced the transfer of knowledge with an easy personal style that showed respect for his students, while keeping their interest. He went out of his way for his students. I respected Dave and looked up to him because of his intelligence and knowledge, but at the same time he treated me as a colleague and friend. He willingly shared his knowledge while at the same time challenged me to apply my knowledge to solve groundwater problems.

Dave enjoyed life whether it was solving challenging groundwater problems, sailing, or running a marathon. He approached each with determination, but never forgot to have fun. As a friend Dave knew the value of people and shared his enjoyment of life with them. An excellent sailor, he loved a strong wind, but did not lose his smile if we had to drop sail and motor because the wind died. He picked a great partner in Lina who’s values and zest for life mirrored Dave’s.

I miss being able to call him up to discuss the latest groundwater issues or to get help with a technical problem. I miss sailing and skiing with him. And most of all I miss his friendship and the fun we had.

I diligently worked on my thesis in late 1989, having spent two summers, and a snowy March weekend stream gauging with help from classmate John Lovenburg, at the Steamboat Springs Geothermal Area, near Reno, Nevada.

After I finished a draft of my thesis, it was shared with a few interested parties, including companies operating in the area who had graciously provided data they had collected and paid for.  However, some of the conclusions of my thesis linked the operations of one of these companies to declines in hot spring activity in the area.  Soon, SDSU was warned in writing of possible legal action on behalf of the company.  Caught off guard, Dave and I walked across the SDSU campus one day to a meeting with Don Short, the Dean of the College of Sciences at the time.  When asked by Dean Short about the merits of my thesis, Dave did not hesitate to say that he stood by its conclusions.  We then decided that, to avoid potential legal action, I would remove all privately-collected data from my thesis and rewrite the affected portions.  Dean Short gave the green light to this approach, even when told that the thesis conclusions would not change significantly.  I subsequently published my thesis, graduated, and went off to work as a professional in Orange County in the spring of 1990, having been recruited by Dave Mark, another of Dave’s students.  Not long after, a federal government agency funding my work evaluated additional data from my thesis area and incorporated these data into a report with somewhat different conclusions.  Dave and I elected not to be cited as co-authors of this report because we had not analyzed the additional data and believed that some of the most important conclusions in my thesis still held water (pun intended).  Although there may have been merit to the report conclusions regarding an additional factor affecting the hot springs, this did not necessarily detract from the more significant conclusions of my thesis.

Ultimately, no legal action was ever taken against me, Dave, or the University.

Perhaps you might chalk this up to academic freedom, where a student or professor should be able to communicate ideas or facts without being targeted for retaliation or job loss.  But, those of you who worked with Dave in one capacity or another knew that he would not hesitate to reach controversial conclusions, if the data and analyses led directly to such.  Dave was not afraid of conflict or controversy.  It is routine in the world of groundwater contamination, groundwater supply in California, and environmental impact, and he didn’t avoid it.

When I reminded Dave of this story in the fall of 2014, he modestly dismissed his support and noted that Dean Short deserved the credit for standing behind my work.  However, I am sure that Dean Short would not have done so without trusting Dave.  Dave’s reputation as a respected scientist, professor, and consultant carried weight.  And, Dave didn’t waver.  He had complete confidence in my work and the more significant conclusions.  He could have caved to fear and asked me to remove the controversial conclusions of my thesis.  But, he didn’t.  He stood by me.

So, when I reflect on my life, I thankfully and humbly count my thesis work with Dave as one of the true highlights.  It would have not materialized without him.  I was truly fortunate to have worked with such a great teacher and mentor, who stood by me.  And, who made a difference.

I took this video on February 28, 2014. Dave was still walking and talking and making everyone laugh with his snarky comments. He was our hero and always an inspiration. He will be missed. 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPXzb9WSo38

When I was about eight years old we started an adventure up to the top of a mountain that had a waterfall at the very end of the trail. We walked for what felt like forever (being 8 years old) and I kept asking dad "when are we going to get to the waterfall?" His response was always "it is just around the next corner" That kept me going for a long time until I had enough of hiking and I was about to sit down.. until I heard the waterfall and went racing up to the edge of the path. The waterfall was beautiful and well worth the long hike up.

This sort of became a long-standing joke between us, everything is just around the corner. It always seems that the harder you work for something the sweeter life is when you finally reach your goal.


Love you dad with all of my heart.